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“The United States agreed on Tuesday to resume military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine after Kyiv said it was ready to support Washington's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with Russia, the countries said in a joint statement… The U.S.-Ukraine agreement was a sharp turnaround from an acrimonious White House meeting on February 28…
“The two countries said they agreed to conclude as soon as possible a comprehensive agreement for developing Ukraine’s critical mineral resources, which had been in the works and was thrown into limbo by that meeting. Following that encounter, the United States cut off intelligence sharing and weapons shipments to Ukraine.” Reuters
“The Kremlin said on Wednesday it would review details from Washington about [the] proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine before responding, while U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hoped a deal would be struck within days.” Reuters
Here’s our recent coverage of Ukraine. The Flip Side
Both sides urge Trump to hold Russia to the terms of any ceasefire it agrees to:
“[Putin] has opposed a ceasefire unless it is preceded by a settlement of the war’s ‘root causes.’ By his definition of those causes, he has insisted on the removal of Zelensky’s regime (which he sees as illegitimate), the ‘demilitarization’ and ‘neutralization’ of Ukraine (meaning its disarmament and a pledge never to join NATO), and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from much of Eastern Europe (which is to say, the reversal of the West’s Cold War victory)…
“In recent weeks, Trump has expressed sympathy for Putin’s views, saying that Ukraine started the war and remains the main obstacle to peace. At the very least, the results of the Jeddah meeting put that proposition to a test. ‘The ball is in Russia’s court,’ Secretary of State Marco Rubio said coming out of the meeting. If Putin rejects the ceasefire offer, he added, ‘then we’ll unfortunately know what the impediment is to peace.’ If Putin says nyet, even Trump might get the picture.”
Fred Kaplan, Slate
“Trump should insist Russia make the same no-strings-attached agreement as Ukraine. Namely, the fighting must stop along the entirety of the front line — including in Kursk — for 30 days. Based on Russia’s prior rampant rhetoric of breaking ceasefire agreements, Trump must also remain laser-focused on ensuring compliance with any ceasefire…
“If Russia refuses these terms, Trump should take immediate action to compel a change in Putin’s strategic calculus. Trump could, for example, provide additional arms supplies to Ukraine, enforce sanctions against Russian oil smuggling, and prepare secondary sanctions on China and India regarding their purchases of Russian oil and gas. Those secondary sanctions would devastate the Russian economy.”
Tom Rogan, Washington Examiner
Other opinions below.
“This was another example of Trump’s transactional approach to foreign relationships… This may yield short-term compliance, but it comes at the expense of the nation’s reputation as a trustworthy ally — and encourages the US’s partners to look elsewhere for strategic cooperation…
“The big question for Ukraine remains a security guarantee… Without a plan in place to guarantee Ukraine’s post-war safety, it’s unclear that this would be an end to the war so much as a pause.”
Patrick Reis, Vox
Regarding a potential minerals deal, “Even if there are mineral rights to claim, it may take us 18 years to exploit them. Ukraine could offer us something immediately more worthwhile… The United States should be looking to acquire not what’s underground in Ukraine, but rather what’s 100 feet in the air. We need Kyiv’s drone technology…
“In 2024, the Ukrainians produced 1.2 million drones, many with ranges well in excess of 180 miles, and they’re on track to produce 4 million in 2025. Their defense industrial base is accomplishing in weeks what the Pentagon’s procurement system has failed to do for decades — that is, to quickly produce new, battle-tested weapons systems…
“The United States should license the battle-tested drone technology Ukrainian companies are developing and producing at scale and in real-time, obviating overnight our greatest strategic weakness. With the licensing fees in hand, the Ukrainians would have the resources needed to establish a credible national deterrent.”
Rahm Emanuel, Washington Post
“The usual suspects reflexively accused Trump of being a Russian stooge, a would-be strongman who sucks up to tyrants, etc. But perhaps it took brutal public comments to push Ukraine to where it needs to be on negotiations. Trump’s public brutality undermines the international prestige of, and respect for, America as a beacon of democracy and principle. That is an absolute and undeniable loss…
“But it is nevertheless also arguably an effective way of proceeding amid new international realities that Trump is not creating, as his critics imply, but recognizing and adapting to. Is there any chance that Ukraine and Russia would now be heading for peace negotiations if Kamala Harris or Joe Biden were in the Oval Office paying continued lip service to an old order that they failed to recognize has ended?”
Hugo Gurdon, Washington Examiner
“The Russian government has broken its promises and assurances in peace treaties in Chechnya, Georgia, and Syria; the Budapest Memorandum that was supposed to guarantee Ukraine’s territorial integrity in exchange for giving up the nuclear weapons stationed on its soil; and the extension of the START treaty…
“The only way you get Vladimir Putin and the Russian government to the negotiating table and willing to sign and honor a treaty that establishes a lasting peace is if everyone in Russia realizes that continuing the war will cost them far too much in blood and treasure for far too little annexed territory. If we wanted a serious and lasting peace, we needed to arm the Ukrainians to the teeth.”
Jim Geraghty, National Review
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