On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for refusing to acknowledge Russia’s control over Crimea. He warned that such strong statements could disrupt ongoing efforts to bring the war to an end. Trump took to Truth Social to say, “This statement is very harmful to the peace negotiations with Russia,” referring to recent remarks by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. He also stated that Crimea was “lost years ago and is not even a point of discussion.”

On Tuesday, Zelenskyy had firmly repeated that Ukraine would never accept Russia’s annexation of Crimea, saying, “There’s nothing to talk about here. This is against our constitution.” In response, Trump questioned, “Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognise Crimea as Russian territory, but if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired?”

Trump claimed that a peace agreement was “very close” and accused Zelenskyy of risking it. He criticised the Ukrainian leader for having “nothing to boast about” and “no cards to play,” adding that he aimed to end the violence, not escalate the situation.

These comments reflect Trump's confrontational tone during his meeting with Zelenskyy in the Oval Office in March. They also come at a time when the U.S. is stepping up its efforts to help end the war, which started with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, following its annexation of Crimea in 2014. Earlier that day, U.S. Vice President JD Vance warned that the U.S. might withdraw from ceasefire negotiations if Russia and Ukraine can’t agree.

Speaking to reporters during his visit to India, Vance said, “We’ve issued a very explicit proposal to both the Russians and the Ukrainians, and it’s time for them to either say yes, or for the United States to walk away from this process.”