Trump says Ukraine must accept peace plan or lose U.S. support

Trump says Ukraine must accept peace plan or lose U.S. support

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – U.S. President Donald Trump delivered a stark assessment of the war in Ukraine on Friday, signaling that Washington’s backing for Kyiv will depend on Ukraine’s willingness to accept a negotiated settlement with Russia. Speaking at the White House after meeting New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, Trump said a peace deal is “reasonably close,” but warned that Ukrainian leaders will face difficult choices.

According to a transcript published by The New York Times, Trump said he has not spoken directly with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in recent days, but confirmed that his administration is in continuous communication with Ukrainian officials. “I’ve spoken with their people. We have a plan,” he said, describing the current state of the conflict as a humanitarian disaster that “should never have happened.”

Winter conditions and attacks on energy infrastructure accelerate pressure

Trump warned that the coming winter and sustained attacks on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure have intensified the need for a swift resolution. He noted that major energy facilities have been repeatedly targeted, creating what he described as a dire situation for civilians as temperatures drop.

The President framed the urgency of the moment as a driving force behind his administration’s push for a settlement, suggesting that realities on the ground are dictating the diplomatic timeline.

Trump’s ultimatum: accept the deal or face the war alone

The most uncompromising moment of the press conference came when Trump addressed Zelensky’s recent remarks about Ukraine potentially sacrificing “either a partner or its dignity.” Trump dismissed the sentiment, insisting that the Ukrainian leader will need to accept the terms offered.

“He’ll have to like it,” Trump said. “And if he doesn’t, then they can just keep fighting.” When asked whether the U.S. would reduce support if Kyiv refused, Trump replied that Ukraine no longer has leverage: “At some point he’s going to have to accept something.”

Trump recounted a past conversation with Zelensky in which he told him directly, “You don’t have the cards.”

High casualty numbers cited as reason for ending the conflict

To underline the urgency, Trump cited casualty figures he said highlight the futility of continuing the war. According to the transcript, he claimed that Ukraine lost 25,000 soldiers last month alone and that combined Ukrainian and Russian fatalities are averaging “six or seven thousand a week.”

“We haven’t seen anything like this since the Second World War,” Trump said, lamenting the scale of the deaths on both sides and emphasizing the need to halt further loss of life.

Trump blames previous administration and says peace opportunity was lost

Trump reiterated his long-held view that the war was avoidable. “This is a war that should have never happened,” he said, arguing that it would not have occurred under his administration. He added that opportunities to negotiate a settlement existed “one or two years ago,” but were missed.

Despite the grim picture, Trump said he believes the parties are “reasonably close” to an agreement, though he stopped short of making a firm prediction.

Trump cites relationship with Putin as potential advantage

The President said he expected his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin to expedite a peace deal, admitting he believed the conflict would have been resolved more quickly. He referenced past diplomatic achievements, including agreements involving India, Pakistan, and African nations, as evidence of his ability to broker international deals.

Domestic pressure mounts to end U.S. involvement

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani echoed growing public frustration with prolonged foreign engagements. He told reporters that many Trump-supporting voters in New York expressed a desire to end “forever wars” and questioned the use of taxpayer money to support conflicts abroad.

Mamdani said voters consistently demanded an end to funding actions that they believed violated human rights, aligning with Trump’s narrative of limiting long-term military and financial involvement.

White House signals shift toward conditional support

Throughout his remarks, Trump emphasized that the conflict does not directly affect the United States beyond its humanitarian implications. “We don’t want to see all of those people dead,” he said, describing the war as a distant tragedy unfolding “on the other side of the ocean.”

The President indicated that the U.S. will not indefinitely sustain open-ended support for Kyiv, framing the war as one that must end through negotiation rather than military victory.

Peace timeline driven by U.S. diplomatic pressure

As the war enters another harsh winter, Trump suggested that the window for a resolution is narrowing rapidly. His comments signaled a major shift in Washington’s approach—moving from unconditional assistance toward a more transactional stance that requires Kyiv to accept the terms offered or proceed without America’s help.

With civilian and military casualties mounting to levels unseen in Europe for decades, the White House appears determined to push for an end to the war, leaving Ukraine to choose between an imperfect peace or continuing the conflict without its most influential ally.