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Negotiators from the Trump administration gave Ukraine an ultimatum last week: Accept this deal, or the next one will be worse.
It’s tough to see how.
The 28-point peace plan fattens Ukraine up for a re-invasion, handing Russia swathes of territory that it failed to take despite an avalanche of men, money and arms.
If allowed by treaty to jump the front lines, a Russian force rejuvenated by the United States would face a Ukraine neutered by it. An army no greater than 600,000 men. Fighter jets parked outside the nation.
And in return, only point No. 5: “Ukraine will receive reliable security guarantees.”
How vague is that, especially considering Ukraine will be banned from joining NATO? It is no guarantee at all, and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky know it.
It is admirable that President Trump wants the killing to end, but why is he — and special envoy Steve Witkoff — falling for Russian propaganda?
Putin argues that Ukraine will eventually crumble, so let’s skip to the end. But Kyiv has more than held its own for four years, and has done the West an enormous favor by weakening our geopolitical foe, reducing Vlad’s offensive to an inch-by-inch slog.
The war may be a stalemate, but it is not an inevitable Russian victory — and even then perhaps a pyrrhic one.
Putin may bluster, but sanctions do bite, and raise the specter of unrest under his dictatorship.
He dreamed of a new Russian Empire, but at 73, time is not on his side.
Ukraine was supposed to fall quickly. Yet Kyiv’s drones and missiles have done spectacular damage to his oil and gas infrastructure.
The Europeans are the ones paying for those arms, and giving our military manufacturers a huge boost in the process. Ukraine, with the help of the United States and European Union, “holds the cards,” as Trump says. Why not use them?
Leverage
We’re not calling for endless war, nor encouraging the start of World War III. Aiding Ukraine does not invariably lead to that end, despite the propaganda podcasters paid by Russia to claim that and encourage total surrender.
Putting pressure on Putin isn’t “escalation,” it’s about a fair peace.
Just weeks ago, the US approved sales of Patriot launcher upgrades to Ukraine. Trump recently sanctioned Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil. These new measures are just starting to take hold.
Putin already rejected overtures in Alaska. The sudden push for a new deal shows that behind the bluffing, there is desperation.
At least the United States must use its leverage to get a better deal than the one offered. Freeze the battle lines where they are now, don’t give Russia territory it doesn’t have. If fighter jets must move to Poland, don’t put caps on Ukraine’s armed forces.
Rather than a vague “security guarantee,” put a US military base in Ukraine — a deterrent and a reassurance.
Mr. President, we know you’re no fan of former President Joe Biden, who left you with this mess, or Zelensky, whom you don’t seem to like.
But this isn’t personal — this is about the wars, or the peace, of the future.
Let’s be clear. This may be Biden’s War, but it will go down as Trump’s Peace Deal.
History shows that every time peace-loving powers give a strongman what he wants, he just takes more. A Russia allowed to rebuild under this lopsided peace plan will simply wait to take the rest of Ukraine in two or three years, then threaten the rest of Europe.
“American First” does not stop at our borders, as the president understands. An emboldened Russia only helps China, only helps destabilize the world and the prosperity we enjoy.
Risk & reward
Europe and Ukraine met on Sunday, discussing changes to the agreement. Mr. President, you have indicated that the 28-point plan is a framework that can be changed. Good.
Ukraine asking for flexibility and some concessions is not a rejection of the deal; it is a necessary negotiation.
Future generations won’t remember a forced treaty as a triumph. It will be a capitulation.
If this “peace” plan doesn’t evolve into something far more even-handed, history will not be kind to President Trump.
There are no Nobel Appeasement Prizes. Stand up for Ukraine and a peace that does not reward the warmonger.
