Trump's 100‑day plan: Talks with Putin, not peace
Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, believes that future U.S. President Donald Trump will need one hundred days to initiate negotiations with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, not to end the war. In the Italian newspaper "La Stampa," Podolyak stated that there can be "no compromise at Ukraine's expense."
Podolyak emphasized that there can be "no compromise at Ukraine's expense." He explained, "Donald Trump says he will end the war in one hundred days. But it's important to understand what he means: in one hundred days, he will be able to start negotiations with Putin," said the advisor to the Ukrainian president. He added that negotiations between Ukraine and Russia only occur after this.
Podolyak explained that to end the war, it is necessary to understand the context and listen to President Zelensky, who speaks of two fundamental steps. The first is aligning the positions of the U.S., the European Union, and Ukraine on a just peace. Secondly, the tools to pressure Russia must be clearly defined for the future. Russia will not give up its desire to continue attacking Ukraine and not just Ukraine, emphasized Zelensky's advisor.
Harmful illusions
Podolyak assessed that "talk of peace in one hundred days is harmful to us and the West." He rhetorically asked whether we want to stop the aggressor country and live in peace or allow it to continue expanding without consequences. In his view, Ukraine should not discuss readiness to cede Donbas, and a compromise at Ukraine's expense is unacceptable. "But if everyone keeps saying we should give something to Russia, it's like an invitation to a wedding," he assessed.
Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, retired General Keith Kellogg, stated a few days earlier on Fox News that the president-elect wants to end the war in Ukraine "as quickly as possible" but does not intend to yield to Putin.
"People need to understand that he's not trying to give something to Putin or to the Russians. He's actually trying to save Ukraine and save their sovereignty and he's going to make sure that it's equitable, that it's fair," stated Kellogg. He noted that his goal is to find a resolution to the conflict within 100 days of Donald Trump's inauguration.
