![](https://i.imgur.com/CLvY2jA.png")
11-02-2025, 10:11 PM
Trump discussed his administration’s effort to end war in an interview with Fox News aired Monday, ahead of a meeting tabled for this week between his vice president, JD Vance, Ukrainian President Zelensky. “They (Ukraine) may make a deal, may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday,” Trump said. He stressed that he also wanted to see a return on investment with US aid for Ukraine, again floating dea of a trade for Kyiv’s rare earth minerals. U.S. president’s comments will likely delight Kremlin, who illegally annexed four Ukrainian regions since launching its full-scale invasion and seeks Ukraine’s total submission. “A significant part of Ukraine wants to become Russia, & fact that it has already become Russia is (undeniable),” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Tuesday, when asked about Trump’s comments.
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, it believed it would capture the capital Kyiv in days and the rest of the country in weeks. With the war set to enter its fourth year later this month, Moscow holds around a fifth of Ukraine’s territory. In 2023, it held a sham referendum in four occupied regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – in attempt to lend legitimacy to its annexation. Fox News interview, Trump said his admin had made “tremendous progress” in laying ground for potential peace talks with Russia and Ukraine. Zelensky said Monday “some serious people” from Trump admin will visit Ukraine this week ahead of Munich Security Conference in Germany, where Zelensky is meeting with Vance.
Trump repeated his interest in reaping a return on US assistance for Kyiv. “They have tremendously valuable land in terms of rare earth, in terms of oil and gas, in terms of other things. I want to have our money secured,” he said. “I told them that I want equivalent, like $500 billion of rare earth, & they’ve essentially agreed to do that, so at least we don’t feel stupid. Otherwise we’re stupid. I said to them, we have to get something.
Whereas the Biden admin said its support for Kyiv was to defend “the right of people to determine their own futures,” & to maintain “principle that a country can’t change its neighbor’s borders by force,” Trump’s comments reinforce his more transactional approach to geopolitics.
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, it believed it would capture the capital Kyiv in days and the rest of the country in weeks. With the war set to enter its fourth year later this month, Moscow holds around a fifth of Ukraine’s territory. In 2023, it held a sham referendum in four occupied regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – in attempt to lend legitimacy to its annexation. Fox News interview, Trump said his admin had made “tremendous progress” in laying ground for potential peace talks with Russia and Ukraine. Zelensky said Monday “some serious people” from Trump admin will visit Ukraine this week ahead of Munich Security Conference in Germany, where Zelensky is meeting with Vance.
Trump repeated his interest in reaping a return on US assistance for Kyiv. “They have tremendously valuable land in terms of rare earth, in terms of oil and gas, in terms of other things. I want to have our money secured,” he said. “I told them that I want equivalent, like $500 billion of rare earth, & they’ve essentially agreed to do that, so at least we don’t feel stupid. Otherwise we’re stupid. I said to them, we have to get something.
Whereas the Biden admin said its support for Kyiv was to defend “the right of people to determine their own futures,” & to maintain “principle that a country can’t change its neighbor’s borders by force,” Trump’s comments reinforce his more transactional approach to geopolitics.
