President Trump has exerted significant pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to engage in negotiations with Russia, employing a tactic likened to both a carrot and a stick—offering incentives while threatening to expose corruption in Ukraine. This approach has led Zelensky to propose a cessation of air and naval attacks on Russia and to agree to a deal that would allocate a portion of Ukraine’s mineral resources to the United States. Despite Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressing a readiness to negotiate, President Vladimir Putin remains reluctant to accept peace unless it guarantees a definitive victory that is unattainable on the battlefield. The U.S. administration, represented by retired General Keith Kellogg, indicates ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at compelling both nations to the negotiating table. However, with Ukraine’s military exhausted and Ukraine’s defense reliant on U.S. intelligence for precision strikes, any hastily formed peace agreement lacking substantial security guarantees could lead to further instability. Consequently, successful mediation demands a balanced approach, with Trump needing to apply equal pressure on both Ukraine and Russia to achieve a genuinely peaceful resolution rather than a temporary pause in hostilities.
