CNN releases details of Yermak’s meeting with Trump’s team
6 December 08:42
On Wednesday, December 6, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, met in Washington with future US Vice President J.D. Vance and future National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. CNN reports this with reference to three sources familiar with the details of the meeting, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
What was discussed
According to one of the sources, the meeting was also attended by Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine for European Integration Serhiy Boyev. The main purpose of the meeting was not to discuss a potential peace plan or ways to resolve the war, but to provide the Ukrainian side with an assessment of the current situation on the battlefield and to establish contacts with Trump’s team.
The meeting lasted over an hour. The Ukrainian side outlined the general features of its defense strategy and forecasts of how the situation might change by the time Trump is inaugurated, but did not go into details. Waltz and Vance were mostly listening, the source said.
The Ukrainian representatives were satisfied with the meeting, believing that they had achieved their goals, one of the CNN interlocutors said.
It is noted that during the visit to Washington, the Ukrainian delegation did not meet with Trump’s nominee for special representative for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg. According to the source, Yermak is already familiar with Kellogg thanks to the latter’s previous trips to Ukraine, so there was no need for an additional meeting to establish contacts.
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Background of the visit
Last week, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Andriy Yermak, the head of his office, would soon travel to the United States for talks with representatives of the Trump team. Zelensky emphasized that he wants to work “directly” with Trump and “hear his ideas.”
At the same time, according to sources, there are no plans for Zelenskyy to meet with Trump before his inauguration. The last time they met was in September in New York and later spoke on the phone after the election.
Evolution of the Trump Plan for Ukraine
During the election campaign, Donald Trump repeatedly said that he would stop the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office. Sometimes he even suggested that this could happen within 24 after his election. That time has already passed.
During the election, the media spread the so-called “Trump Plan”. The idea was that the United States would use its influence to stop the war and maintain the status quo. To do this, Trump would force Putin and Zelenskyy to sit down at the negotiating table. If Putin does not agree to negotiate, the United States will give Ukraine all the weapons it needs to win on the battlefield. If Zelenskyy refuses to negotiate, the United States will completely stop helping Ukraine.
This plan, in its various variations, stipulates that Russia retains the territories it temporarily occupies and that Ukraine does not join NATO.
However, later Trump seemed to “forget” about this plan. In particular, he voiced scenarios in which he would force Russia to capitulate due to the decline in world oil prices.
After Trump was elected President of the United States, one of his advisors, Brian Lanza, said that Ukraine should forget about Crimea. The president-elect’s entourage, however, was quick to deny this statement and said that Lanza could not speak for Trump.
