Zelensky renounces ceding territories and disputes Trump’s call to hold elections in Ukraine: ‘I am always ready’

Meloni has always been an active member of the pro-Ukrainian European front, acting as a mediator thanks to her political affinities with the president. Donald Trumpparticularly on immigration issues.

Up in the air are the findings of the national security document that the White House released in the early hours of Thursday through Friday and Trump’s own statements to Policy that same Monday, in which he assured that Russia had everything to win, that Europe would sooner or later submit to this evidence and stop supporting Ukraine, and that Zelensky had to get used to the idea that the only solution was to accept a cession of territories and call elections as soon as possible.

Trump insisted that Zelensky “didn’t even read the agreement” which Jared Kushner And Steve Wittkoff they finished profiling in the Kremlin with Vladimir Putin and his entourage and that they introduced the Ukrainian leader by telephone with the intention that he would accept it at the time.

Furthermore, he suggested that he was using the war as an excuse to end democracy in his country and blamed the prolonged conflict on his enmity toward Putin – “or the first thing he did was ask him to return Crimea and accept Ukraine’s membership in NATO…and he didn’t do it the right way,” Trump said.

On this subject, Trump insisted point by point on the doctrine of the Kremlin and its propagandists that Russian victory was inevitable and that ultimately the difference in size between the two countries would prevail.

These are arguments more typical of February 2022 than December 2025 and which only indicate the convinced alignment of the MAGA movement with pro-Russian theses. Trump keeps repeating that if he were in the White House, the war would not have happened, but the only thing that seems clear is that if he had been in Washington, he would have forced Ukraine to surrender immediately.

Elections in 60 to 90 days

Despite the deluge of personal criticism, Zelensky prefers to remain calm. It must not be easy to hear all the time that you are guilty of defending your country while for your enemy and your aggressor, there is never a bad word. On the contrary. We even appreciate that he “gives in” on certain things and does not seek a humiliating victory on the field. A victory which, despite the insistence of Trump, Putin and their spokespersons, cannot be found.

Zelensky chose not to respond to claims that Ukraine was losing the war. Faced with pressure to accept the peace plan dreamed of by the Kremlin – and which it is very likely that, once accepted, the Kremlin itself would reject to gain time – he indicated that he was preparing, with his European partners, a common response that they could present to Washington.

In short, the optimism announced by the Trump administration that the conflict is entering “its final days” seems nothing more than magical thinking, like the eight wars that Trump claims to have ended.

Finally, facing accusations of not wanting to call elections, one of Putin’s arguments to delegitimize Ukrainian democracy as a whole, Zelensky said he was “always ready” to go to the polls.

The problem is purely legal. The president cannot call an election even if he wants to, since the Constitution prohibits him from doing so while a state of emergency remains declared. Furthermore, thinking about free elections while the Russians occupy parts of four regions and bomb insistently like many others seems absurd.

Despite this, Zelensky promised to submit the proposal to Parliament, try to pass the necessary legislation and prepare everything for a presidential election within 60 to 90 days.

Of course, Russia will be more than attentive to the process to see how it can influence it and how it can ensure that a candidate more sympathetic to its cause ends up winning or at least sowing in the public debate the seeds of discord and the need for immediate capitulation on the terms decided by Trump and Putin.

The drift towards authoritarianism

Because what is clear is that the objective is to exclude the political actor. A smear campaign to blame him for everything that happens, including a possible World War III, in the words of Trump himself.

At a time when the figure of the president is more than ever called into question due to corruption scandals in his immediate environment, it is logical that the pressure of Russian propaganda is tightening more than ever.

Why is Trump joining this push? First, because he wants to achieve the same result and understands that the righteous path is coercion of the weak. Secondly, because not only does he love Putin, but deep down, Russia is an example for him both politically – for its authoritarianism – and for its values ​​– hence the ruthless criticism of open European societies.

Finally, it must be taken into account that Trump does not support Zelensky and has not done so since his first term, when he already tried to pressure him to provide him with information on the companies of Hunter Bidensomething that earned him his first indictment.

If it were up to Trump, Vance and company, the United States would freeze relations with Ukraine and the European Union and leave NATO. The only hope is to believe that not everyone in the Republican Party – including congressmen and senators – thinks the same thing as them.

Both among voters and among GOP leaders, the majority remains the one who understands that Europe is an essential ally and that to support Putin is to betray the essence of the values ​​that the United States has always defended.

It is time for them to say something because the drift is more than worrying. The retired general John Kellynational security adviser during Trump’s first term, on Tuesday urged President X to leave NATO, cut ties with Europe and impose on the United States something that closely resembles totalitarianism. These are completely excessive messages, mostly based on false or exaggerated data and which only seek to shatter eighty years of liberal growth in the West. We’ll see if they get it.