- Category
- Latest news
Trump’s Ultimatum: Ukraine-Russia Talks or US Pulls Back, Says Witkoff
- Authors
![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
US President Donald Trump has issued an ultimatum to both Ukraine and Russia: engage in direct peace talks soon — or risk the United States stepping away from the war altogether, stated Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff in a recent interview with Breitbart News Network on May 12.
“The president has issued an ultimatum to both sides that without those direct talks and if they don’t occur quickly, then he believes the United States ought to step back from this conflict whatever that means and just not be involved,” Witkoff said.
Although the US didn’t start the war, Witkoff said, Washington is eager to help bring it to an end — but only if meaningful negotiations begin.
“It’s not our war. We didn’t start the war, but we want to help to end it. The way that that happens is a ceasefire — everybody stops the violence, and we spend a bit of time together making sure we can deal with the major issues here and I think that we can.”
According to Witkoff, a possible peace summit between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian leader Vladimir Putin may be in the works, with Türkiye rumored as a potential venue. Witkoff has offered to mediate, and said he’s already in informal talks with both sides.
“I think it’s entirely possible,” he said of the summit. “Our job is to put them in a room together and show them that the alternatives to a peaceful resolution here are bad for everybody. That’s our job”
Witkoff described the war as a “stupid war” that “didn’t need to happen,” blaming its outbreak on Joe Biden’s presidency and arguing it would not have occurred had Trump remained in office.
Witkoff identified several unresolved matters that could be addressed in talks, including the status of five disputed Ukrainian regions, control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, and Ukraine’s access to the Dnipro River and Black Sea.
“There are things here that I don’t think are going to be difficult to solve if we get the parties to the table,” he said.
“They’re talking to each other, we’re narrowing issues between them, and then we’re coming up with compromises and creative solutions to address each of their concerns.”
On territorial disputes, he said two regions are under firm Russian control, while three remain under mixed Ukrainian control. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, currently offline, is “a little bit of a crown jewel,” he added, citing its major power generation potential.
Witkoff stressed that informal conversations are already underway with both Kyiv and Moscow.
“We’re in a conversation about what you would accept, Russia, in some of these areas. Would you retreat back behind certain administrative lines? The same thing with the Ukrainians.”
-c98d1f1e3d640641bd535d2a6944dee4.jpg)
Witkoff commented on his engagement with both Russian and Ukrainian officials, stating: “I’ve talked to both — to both sides — because how can you be involved in mediating or crafting solutions unless you’re talking to everybody,” Witkoff said. “I’ve talked to Andrii Yermak, I’ve talked to President Zelenskyy, I’ve talked to their defense minister Mr. Umerov. We have really good — we have positive discussions, positive relationships. I’ve talked to all the national security advisers who are involved in this from England, from France, from Germany, from Italy. And I’ve talked to President Putin. There is no deal without President Putin’s sign off. He is the leader of the Russian Federation, so the notion of not talking to President Putin is somehow something people are against, I don’t understand that logic. We need to talk to everybody.”
He emphasized that understanding both sides is essential to reaching a deal. “You put yourself in their shoes, you understand what they need… Those are the assessments that the president has asked people like me to make on his behalf because he has to be the ultimate decision-maker.”
Earlier, Zelenskyy released a statement welcoming Trump’s call for a complete and unconditional 30-day ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.
“I just heard President Trump’s statement. Very important words,” Zelenskyy said. “I supported Donald Trump with the idea of a complete and unconditional ceasefire—long enough to provide a basis for diplomacy. And we want that, we are ready to provide silence from our side.”
