Anthony J. Constantini
President Donald Trump’s planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin has the Ukrainian government on high alert. It’s not just the fact that Trump will be speaking with Putin one-on-one, but that it comes amidst a reported offer from Putin to agree to a ceasefire and freeze the battlefield – provided Ukraine turns over Donbas.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is strongly against such a proposal, has flooded European leaders with calls to ensure they oppose such a deal. And he has been successful: Leaders around the continent have released multiple statements. All of these statements began with some verbiage about supporting President Trump’s efforts, but the rest was clearly opposed to the idea that any deal could be struck with Russia. All contained two key demands and almost verbatim language: “No decisions on Ukraine without Ukraine, and no decisions on Europe without Europe,” and “We reaffirm the principle that international borders must not be changed by force.”
Start with the former: “No decisions on Ukraine without Ukraine, and no decisions on Europe without Europe.” Throughout the conflict this notion has been constantly thrown around, including by the administration of former President Joe Biden. But on the face of it, it has never made sense. Plenty can be done without Ukraine’s permission. The United States can, as Vice President JD Vance indicated Sunday, is “not going to fund [the war effort] ourselves anymore.” That is a decision on Ukraine, but America absolutely does not need Europe’s permission to act on that front.
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