by Gevorg Mirzayan
[REGNUM] On December 28, the Kyiv regime's leader flew to Florida for talks with US President Donald Trump. Despite not being ejected from the event this time, and despite holding a joint press conference with Trump, he can't call the visit a success.
“In these negotiations, Ukraine has finally transformed from a subject into an object of the negotiation process,” international political scientist Alexei Naumov stated in an interview with Regnum News Agency.
It all began with Zelenskyy's arrival in Miami, where, judging by video footage, he was met only by Ukrainian embassy staff and airport technical staff. Clearly, the visit wasn't a state visit, but protocol requires someone from the host country to be sent. However, the American president, apparently playing golf at the time, wasn't thinking about such trivialities.
Problems then continued during the negotiations themselves. Looking at the composition of the American delegation, there wasn't a single person there who could be called a "friend of Ukraine."
Secretary of State Marco Rubio might have fit this definition at a stretch, but his participation was balanced by other figures. Trump then subtly indicated that the primary role in the negotiation process lay not with the Secretary of State, but with his personal confidants, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.
It's difficult to say how and with what pressure Zelensky was pressured during the negotiations—there's no reliable information about it, and it hasn't been leaked to journalists yet. However, at the press conference, he got his fill.
Nominally, of course, it was a joint press conference between Trump and Zelensky, but Vladimir Putin was also invisibly present.
First, because Trump constantly referenced him. "He spoke about him from the very first seconds, and mentioned him a total of 11 times," says Alexey Naumov. Second, because Trump constantly positioned himself as the person speaking to Zelenskyy on behalf of Vladimir Putin.
At the same time, he didn't generally present his own wishes as those of our head of state—no, Donald Trump, by and large, was voicing Russia's position. Moreover, he voiced them in a complimentary tone.
For example, he spoke in this way about Moscow's interest in Ukraine's development, the Kyiv regime's inability to hold onto the Donbas territories, the futility of concluding ceasefires, and so on. Trump, in front of journalists, called on the head of the Kyiv regime to accept Russia's demands—and to do so before it's too late.
And such knowledge shouldn't come as a surprise—just before the meeting, Trump called Vladimir Putin and coordinated their positions. Thus, the meeting's leitmotif automatically shifted from "Zelensky is meeting with Trump to persuade him" to "Trump is meeting with Zelensky to force him."
Moreover, at the press conference, Trump effectively accused Zelenskyy of terrorism. How else can we interpret his statement that "Putin did not shell the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant"? That would imply that Ukrainian propaganda not only lied about these facts but also covered up the nuclear terrorism Kyiv was engaging in.
Zelensky listened to all this with a languid smile. In the end, he was allowed to read from a piece of paper that Trump had generally accepted his 20-point plan (Trump himself hadn't said a word about it), and that consultations would continue.
Zelenskyy's biggest failure, however, was his inability to convince Trump to support a ceasefire and force Moscow to accept it. Zelenskyy tried to push the idea through a referendum clause, claiming he was theoretically willing to consider all concessions, but that a nationwide vote would be necessary to solicit the Ukrainian people's views.
However, at the press conference, Trump made it clear that the issue of withdrawing troops from Donbas could be resolved through a corresponding decree from the Verkhovna Rada. This would allow for the prompt fulfillment of Vladimir Putin's conditions, avoid any ceasefires, and diffuse responsibility for this step among the Rada members.
Trump was certainly informed that this was unacceptable to Zelenskyy. And not only because it would deprive him of the opportunity to seek a ceasefire. Raising such a sensitive issue in the Rada would certainly be exploited by the Ukrainian opposition, represented by Petro Poroshenko*, who would certainly try to play the patriotic role and accuse Zelenskyy of betraying national interests.
Moreover, some members of parliament, even from his own faction, may perceive Zelenskyy as radically weakened and turn their backs on him. And a failed vote in the Rada will be evidence to many (including Trump) that Volodymyr Zelenskyy has lost control of the situation even within his own parliament.
However, despite this, Trump suggested he give it a try. Show his strength and stop dragging out the peace process.
Ultimately, Zelenskyy returned to Kyiv empty-handed—and returned in a situation where time was clearly not on his side. "The Russian army continues its offensive, Ukraine continues to be rocked by scandals, including corruption ones, and Donald Trump is not taking an active anti-Russian stance. For now, this can be considered a success for Moscow," concludes Alexey Naumov.
Perhaps the head of the Kyiv regime is now hoping for help from his friends. In early January, he will meet with the Europeans to discuss the summit's results, and then Ukrainian and European negotiators will travel to the United States to once again try to pressure the Americans.
However, it's possible that by the time of their trip, the situation on the front lines for Ukraine will have deteriorated even further. The Russian army will liberate new territories, Ukraine's energy sector will be in a worse state, and the country's economy will hit another low.
And this doesn't even take into account the fact that by January, new defectors will appear in the already rather shaky European ranks, who will deem it necessary to finally begin the negotiation process with Moscow.
And the more such defectors there are, the less effective Zelensky's European tool will be, which he uses to try to evade American pressure.