The highly contentious meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, held on February 28, ended abruptly without a resolution, and the expected signing of the Ukraine-United States Mineral Resources Agreement was cancelled. The Trump administration, in a major development, has halted the supply of military aid to Ukraine, terming the behaviour of the war-torn Ukrainian president a disrespect to the US.
Trump’s stance in this regard is very clear that, despite the support provided by the US, Ukraine has proven to be unable to win the war against Russia. Ukraine should reach a ceasefire agreement with Russia, otherwise there is a risk of World War III breaking out -- this is what Trump tried to convey during the meeting which was telecast live.
Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe by area, and was under Soviet control for a long time. Reports are emerging in the international media that after the proposed peace agreement, the territory of Ukraine that Russia has occupied could be annexed with Russia, whereas Trump wants to impose US control over the remaining Ukrainian territory in order to benefit from its vast reserves of natural minerals. In this regard, examples of dividing Vietnam, Korea, Sudan and Germany in the past are also being discussed.
Some reports also suggest that the reason for twisting the arm of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is an unspoken attempt to establish a trilateral military alliance between Russia, the US and India in the near future. The aim is to limit the global influence of China, the world's second largest economic power.
After the Russian aggression against Ukraine started three years ago, China's official position was that it respects Ukraine's sovereignty but that Russia's concerns regarding Nato expansion should also be addressed.The statement of the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson made headlines in international newspapers in which he described China-Russia bilateral ties as a new model of international relations. Diplomatically, China either preferred to abstain when resolutions against Russia were presented at UN meetings or voted against the resolution condemning Russia.
India has taken a neutral stance on the Ukraine conflict, avoiding public criticism of Russia’s aggression. The Modi government, despite all the Western pressure, is not willing to say a single word against Moscow. In such a situation, if Trump's support is also available to Russia, then the US will also come on the same page with Russia, China and India on the Ukraine Issue. In my view, any new alliance on the Ukraine issue is unlikely to be formed due to huge differences in national interests of these countries.
Apparently, European countries are supporting Ukraine due to concerns that if Moscow grabs Ukraine today, the next target would be other former Soviet states of Eastern Europe, such as Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, etc, and Russian troops will soon be knocking on the doors of Western Europe.
According to the latest reports from Washington, Trump revealed in his first presidential address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday that he had received a letter from Zelenskyy, in which the Ukrainian president expressed his willingness to resolve the conflict with Russia under US leadership. According to Trump, Zelensky wrote in the letter that Ukraine wanted to sit at the negotiating table as soon as possible to establish peace.
I believe that Trump's recent behaviour has proven decisive in making the dream of peace in Ukraine a reality. Trump has once again surprised the world by taking a firm stance. He has proven that he came to the White House to end wars. The Ukrainian leadership should adopt a realistic approach. While trusting in Trump's words, a ceasefire agreement with Russia must be signed immediately.
Pakistani people are now looking towards Trump with a hope that after the successful Gaza ceasefire and now the upcoming Ukraine ceasefire, the long-standing issue of Kashmir will also be resolved under Trump's mediation in the next phase.
The writer is a member of the National Assembly and patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Hindu Council. He tweets/posts @RVankwani
