Tag: ukraine

Trump vs. Zelensky: Fact-Checking the New Ukraine War

There may come a day when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky regrets taking the bait and, at what may be the conclusion of three years of fighting Russia, being drawn into a verbal war with U.S. President Donald Trump. Over the last few days, Trump has called Zelensky a dictator who started the war, and Zelensky has said that Trump is “caught in a web of disinformation.”

As negotiations are being prepared, and Zelensky needs more than ever to be in the shadow of Trump’s goodwill, this may be the worst time to become entrenched as an enemy of Trump. Vice President J.D. Vance said that Zelensky has been getting “bad advice,” adding “[t]he idea that Zelensky is going to change the president’s mind by badmouthing him in public media… everyone who knows the president will tell you that is an atrocious way to deal with this administration.”

The war of words began with Trump scolding Zelensky on his handling of the war, saying Ukraine “should have never started it. You could have made a deal.” Zelensky responded that he “would like to have more truth with the Trump team.”

Trump is wrong about the first point and right about the second. The beginning of the war in Ukraine is complex, and it roots go back many years before the Russian invasion. Despite Western claims of an unprovoked war, Russia was the recipient of multiple serious provocations. Request for their security concerns to be addressed in negotiations went ignored. NATO broke its promise and continued its expansion east to Russia’s borders even promising that Ukraine’s path to membership was irreversible. Ethnic Russians who were citizens of Ukraine were being threatened and their rights were being revoked. 60,000 elite Ukrainian troops massed on the eastern border with Donbas and Ukrainian artillery shelling into the Donbas had dramatically increased. There was genuine alarm in Russia that Ukraine was about to invade the Donbas. But it was Russia that illegally invaded Ukraine. The West provoked Russia, but Russia attacked Ukraine. On this, Trump is wrong.

But he is not wrong that Ukraine could have made a deal. He is wrong to ignore that before Ukraine could have made a deal, the U.S. and NATO could have made a deal instead of ignoring overtures by Putin on the eve of the war to negotiate a new security architecture and taking discussions of NATO membership for Ukraine off the table.

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Yes, Ukraine Started the War

The outcry spread quickly across the Western world: Donald Trump dared say Ukraine started the war.  

The New York Times accused Trump of “rewriting the history of Russia’s invasion of its neighbor.” The paper’s White House correspondent wrote: 

“When Russian forces crashed over the borders into Ukraine in 2022 determined to wipe it off the map as an independent state, the United States rushed to aid the beleaguered nation and cast its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, as a hero of resistance.

Three years almost to the day later, President Trump is rewriting the history of Russia’s invasion of its smaller neighbor. Ukraine, in this version, is not a victim but a villain. And Mr. Zelensky is not a latter-day Winston Churchill, but a ‘dictator without elections’ who somehow started the war himself and conned America into helping.”

The BBC reported: 

“Ukraine didn’t start the war. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, having annexed Crimea in 2014.

The annexation came after Ukraine’s pro-Russian president was ousted by popular demonstrations.”

CNN howled: “President Donald Trump has now fully adopted Russia’s false propaganda on Ukraine, turning against a sovereign democracy that was invaded in favor of the invader. … Trump wrongly accused Ukraine of starting the conflict.”

“In comments to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump falsely claimed Kyiv had started the conflict, the largest on European soil since the second world,” complained the Financial Times. 

It was pretty much the same thing across the Western media landscape, which spoke with one voice.

The media takes speaking with one voice as confirmation that they are right. But it’s often just massive confirmation bias for the story Western intelligence services and political leaders tell them, rather than an independent examination of the facts. 

In this case the facts show that Trump is right. 

The central question in all this is: when did the Ukraine war actually start? The Western mainstream leads masses of people to believe it began Feb. 22, 2022, when the Russian regular army intervened in what was already an eight-year old civil war, which was very much begun by Ukraine, with U.S. help. 

That’s the part they don’t tell you.   

The key to the falsehood is what the BBC calls “Ukraine’s pro-Russian president” being “ousted by popular demonstrations.” [Emphasis added.]

Of course Trump didn’t explain that. He’s not a great public speaker. He too often fails to lay out the context needed to understand what he’s talking about. 

Trump’s fleeting remark at a press encounter at his Florida estate last Tuesday set off the international furor.

“Today I heard: ‘Oh, well, we weren’t invited’ [to the talks in Saudi Arabia with Russia],” Trump said about Ukrainian president Volodmyr Zelensky. “Well, you’ve been there for three years … you should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”

It was those six italicized words that ignited the firestorm. The rest of what he said in that sentence was ignored. 

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Allies Bluff, They Cannot Make It Without the US in Ukraine

Because Trump is rightly tired of the U.S. paying for Ukraine’s defense, the world is turning on him. Ukrainian officials are criticizing America, Europe is calling Trump “Hitler,” and Ukrainian soldiers on Twitter are removing American flags from their uniforms—all because the American gravy train is about to dry up. With Trump demanding a better deal for the American people, the world will have to fend for itself. Europe is experiencing adolescent angst now, as it is forced to man-up, come of age, and move out from under the U.S. protective umbrella.

Fact: The U.S. WILL NO LONGER BE PAYING FOR IT!
It’s time for Europe to step up and defend itself. While it’s unfortunate that many Europeans may die unnecessarily, part of me anticipates the vindication of watching weak, woke European militaries—crippled by declining birthrates and a post-Christian, soy-boy-vegan culture—be decimated by Russian conscripts.

The consensus among many on Twitter and in liberal media that the U.S. has burned its bridges with Europe and that Europe will now move on without the U.S. as a trade and defense partner is absurd. The U.S. cannot be replaced as a market. With a population of 330 million and an average income exceeding $82,000 annually—more than double Europe’s average—there is no viable replacement. And if such a replacement exists, why wasn’t Europe trading with this mythical nation before?

For decades, the U.S., China, and Russia have invested heavily in defense, leaving Europe far behind. Europe would need to spend 10% of GDP each year to catch up over the next 20 years. However, in that same period, the U.S., Russia, and China would continue increasing their spending. Realistically, it would take about 30 years for Europe to reach any semblance of parity. And this assumes that Europe lifts its restrictions on nuclear weapons and other advanced weapons that the U.S., Russia, and China possess. And with Europe’s demographic decline, the pool of military-aged men and women will continue to shrink.

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“We Created A Monster With Zelensky”: White House Isn’t Backing Down In Growing Rift

Axios has released a devastating report full of quotes from Trump admin officials which strongly suggests the growing rift with Zelensky is only about to worsen. 

The Ukrainian leader is seen as having overstepped by the White House. A US administration official involved in peace negotiations with Russia bluntly told the publication that “Zelensky is an actor who committed a common mistake of theater kids: He started to think he’s the character he plays on TV.“ 

“Yes, he has been brave and stood up to Russia. But he would be six feet under if it wasn’t for the millions we spent, and he needs to exit stage right with all the drama,” the unidentified official said. This strongly suggests that Trump is pursuing a full political transition in Ukraine at this point.

Another official, also involved in negotiations described that “We created a monster with Zelensky,” and that “these Trump-deranged Europeans who won’t send troops are giving him terrible advice.”

Speaking of which, one Saturday headline has revealed the European Union is still seeking ways to seize part of Russa’s frozen $280 billion in assets held abroad. So while Washington under Trump is trying to strike peace and compromise, the Europeans look content to try and sabotage what they already see as a ‘bad deal’ to end the war.

Yet another US official was quoted in Axios as reviewing that “In the course of a week, Zelensky rebuffed President Trump’s treasury secretary, his secretary of state and his vice president, all before moving on to personally insulting President Trump in the press.“

The unnamed official followed with, “What did Zelensky think was going to happen?”

Meanwhile a mineral deal is said to be close, with some Friday night headlines claiming a final deal was ‘hours’ away – but Zelensky’s office has said it’s still mulling over the first draft. “President Trump is obviously very frustrated right now with President Zelensky,” National Security Advisor Mike Waltz underscored in Thursday comments.

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Zelensky Caves: Will Sign Over Ukraine’s Mineral Rights to U.S. as Compensation For Military Aid

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky has agreed to sign over Ukraine’s mineral rights to the U.S. as compensation for the hundreds of billions of dollars given to the European nation for its war against Russia.

After initially rebuffing the Trump administration, Zelensky on Friday reportedly agreed to sign over the country’s mineral rights to the U.S. in exchange for military support.

“This is an agreement that can strengthen our relations, and the key is to work out the details to ensure its effectiveness,” he said in a nightly video address. “I look forward to the outcome—a just result.”

From the Wall Street Journal:

Zelensky was presented with a deal by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Kyiv last week, but refused to sign, saying the Ukrainian side needed to study it further and that a deal should contain some form of security guarantees for Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials said that they had only a few hours to study it before it was presented to them.

An agreement could be signed as soon as Saturday, although it isn’t yet complete, people briefed on the talks said. The exact terms couldn’t be learned.

Though the exact terms of the deal have yet to be revealed, White House officials say Ukraine would give up 50% of its mineral resources, which include major reserves of iron ore, coal, titanium, lithium, and uranium.

In exchange, Zelensky has demanded “reliable and clear” security guarantees from the U.S. that ensure long-term protection from Russia.

Zelenskyy had previously refused to sign such a deal, prompting Trump to fire off a scathing statement calling the Ukrainian leader a “dictator.”

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Zelensky surrenders to Trump and ‘will sign mineral deal within hours’

Donald Trump appears to have won his trade standoff with Volodymyr Zelensky, as the Ukrainian president is set to give in and sign a deal giving the U.S. access to deposits of critical minerals.

The deal was seen as crucial for satisfying Washington’s demands for a peace settlement between Ukraine and Russia to end their three-year long war. 

It’s a staggering surrender from Zelensky, who had said just days earlier: ‘I defend Ukraine, I can’t sell our country.’ 

Zelensky said on Friday that officials from his country and the U.S. were working on concluding an economic deal to ensure that the accord worked and was fair to Kyiv. 

‘We’re signing an agreement, hopefully in the next fairly short period of time,’ Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about a deal for Ukraine’s minerals.

The Wall Street Journal later cited several people familiar with the matter that the deal is close and will be signed within hours.

It comes following word that Zelensky angered Trump so much during negotiations that Trump threatened to completely pull US funding from Ukraine, Axios reported. 

Zelensky had apparently worn out his welcome with the entire American negotiating team – which included the president, JD Vance, Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz – in the span of a week.

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The Rise and Fall of Agent Zelensky

That Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s political fortunes have been on a downward trajectory over the course of the past year is undeniable. The accelerated collapse of Zelensky as a legitimate governing authority in Ukraine that has transpired over the course of the past few days was unimaginable. That Zelensky would double down by carrying out a personal attack against Donald Trump is unthinkable.

Back in the summer of 2023, I tried to warn the American people, and the world, about the illegitimacy and inherent instability of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. I helped write and produce a two-part exposé of the one-time comedian titled “Agent Zelensky.”

Part One was well received when I published it on YouTube.

Too well received.

The Ukrainian intelligence services, which had flagged me as a Russian disinformation agent and marked me for death by putting me on an infamous liquidation list, reached out to their FBI contacts in the Legal Attache office of the US Embassy in Kiev, and demanded that action be taken.

The appropriate authorities at YouTube were approached by the FBI, and soon the Agent Zelensky video was removed from the platform.

Part Two of Agent Zelensky suffered the same fate within hours of being published.

Then the Department of Justice tasked the FBI with eliminating the source of Agent Zelensky—me.

They targeted me for allegedly being an unregistered agent of the Russian government, trampling my status as an independent journalist whose speech was protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution.

The FBI raided my home and seized my computers, all to intimidate me while the Department of Justice scrambled to make a case against me as an unregistered Russian agent.

They failed.

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US official demands Zelenskyy return to talks over critical minerals deal

US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser has demanded that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy return to negotiations over a critical minerals deal with the US, amid a deepening rift between Washington and Kyiv.

Zelenskyy had on Wednesday rejected US plans to strike a deal for a share of Ukraine’s mineral wealth to repay Washington for wartime aid, saying the US offered no specific security guarantees in the agreement.

“He needs to come back to the table,” Mike Waltz said of Zelenskyy at a press briefing on Thursday.

“President Trump is obviously very frustrated right now with President Zelensky, the fact that he hasn’t come to the table, that he hasn’t been willing to take this opportunity that we have offered,” he said.

The comments came shortly after the US cancelled a planned news conference with Zelenskyy and a US envoy in Kyiv.

The Ukrainian leader had planned to address the media alongside Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, the US envoy for Ukraine, following talks in Kyiv on Thursday.

“At the request of the American side, the format of the meeting provides for protocol filming and does not include statements or questions,” Ukrainian presidential spokesperson Serhii Nikiforov told reporters.

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US switches stance on Ukraine war, seeking $500bn in payback

Ukraine’s diplomatic situation was upended during the past week, as its main ally, the United States, reversed several positions.

US President Donald Trump announced on February 12 that he was beginning direct talks with Russia to end the war, overturning his predecessor’s promise that there would be “nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine”.

On the same day, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed Russian diplomatic language invoking “realism”, when he told Ukraine Defence Contact Group partners in Brussels that “returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective,” and that “the United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement.”

Eventual NATO membership has been a US promise to Ukraine since 2008, and the US has, throughout the war, supported a restoration of the border Russia recognised with Ukraine in 1991.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius called the one-sided concessions “clumsy” and “a mistake”.

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Europe Sending Peacekeeper Troops to Ukraine ‘Unacceptable’, Says Kremlin

Britain is set to pitch a plan for thousands of European NATO members’ soldiers to be deployed to Ukraine as peacekeepers in the coming week, a notion Russia says may constitute a “direct threat”.

Moscow has attempted to pre-empt a European initiative to buttress security in the east of the continent by deterring further fighting after a putative future ceasefire in Ukraine. Russia specifically cited a report in the UK’s Daily Telegraph this week professing to reveal the plan for a European deployment to Ukraine after a ceasefire to keep the peace that would allegedly run to 30,000 troops.

Responding on Thursday morning from the Kremlin, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned “the deployment of NATO countries’ troops to Ukraine cannot be acceptable for Russia”.

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