Maroc - EURASIAREVIEW.COM - A la une - 03/Jan 23:27

Zelenskyy Says Trump Could Be ‘Decisive’ In Ending War

(RFE/RL) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a televised interview broadcast on January 2 that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's "unpredictability" could help end the war with Russia. Trump, who is set to be inaugurated on January 20, has said he would end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office. Ukraine and other European countries have been skeptical about the claim and are concerned that a deal drafted by Trump could force Ukraine to give up territory to Russia in exchange for peace. Zelenskiy said in the interview that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is afraid of Trump, who he said could be "decisive" in ending the war. "He's very strong and unpredictable, and I would really like to see President Trump's unpredictability apply to Russia,” Zelenskiy said in the interview with Ukrainian TV. He also said Trump promised in a recent conversation that one of his first meetings after the inauguration would be with Zelenskiy. The Ukrainian leader has sought to build bridges with Trump amid concerns he could slow U.S. military aid or halt it entirely. Zelenskiy met Trump in Paris last month to discuss the war, and the idea of deploying European peacekeeping forces to monitor a potential cease-fire reportedly was on the agenda. Zelenskiy said in the interview that he supports the idea of France deploying peacekeepers to guarantee a cease-fire but said “France alone is not enough” and stressed this would need to be a step toward joining NATO. "We support this initiative, but. We would not want it to be one or two countries if it comes to this initiative. It should definitely be on the way to NATO," Zelenskiy said. The idea of European forces in Ukraine is supported by some countries that have not yet spoken about it publicly, Zelenskiy said. But there are no specifics yet, he said, and a deployment of several thousand "demonstrative" soldiers would not work. There must also be naval and aviation support, he said. Russia is against the deployment of Western peacekeeping troops to Ukraine as part of any settlement to end the conflict, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier this week. In an interview published on December 30, Lavrov said Moscow was “not satisfied” with that idea and others being proposed by Trump, including postponing Ukrainian NATO membership for 20 years. Zelenskiy, who was interviewed together with his wife, Olena Zelenska, also discussed important achievements by the military in 2024, including the defeat of Russian plans to occupy Kharkiv, Sumy, and Zaporizhzhya and the incursion into Russia's Kursk region. He acknowledged Ukraine's army is fatigued amid Russia's relentless assault on the front line but said the military "will do everything to stabilize the front in January," promising this should happen with the help of weapons due to arrive and with the return of Ukrainian military personnel who are training abroad. Asked about elections, which have been postponed because of the war, Zelenskiy said he didn't know whether he would run for a second term but added that presidential and parliamentary elections are possible after martial law is lifted. He suggested that this could even happen in 2025 if Ukraine manages to end the hot phase of the war in a strong position.