Egypt Daily News – Michael Waltz, National Security Advisor to former President Trump, stated that the message Special Envoy Keith Kellogg should deliver before his meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on Thursday is: “Sign the deal.”
Waltz emphasized that the message should include: “Tone down the rhetoric and sign the economic opportunity deal. Sign the deal.” The White House seeks to finalize a deal, which proposes taking 50% of Ukraine’s rare mineral revenues in exchange for past aid to Kyiv, without any guarantees of future assistance.
A news conference after talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy was canceled Thursday at the request of U.S. officials, a Kyiv official said. The scheduled comments to the media by Zelenskyy and retired U.S. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, were called off after their meeting, the Ukrainian president’s spokesman Serhii Nikiforov said.
‘Tone it down, take a hard look and sign that deal’, Waltz said in reference to a contract Washington has proposed that would see Kyiv hand over vast oil, gas and mineral wealth, supposedly in exchange for security guarantees.
Waltz said the US presented the Ukrainians an ‘incredible and historic opportunity’ to invest in its economy and natural resources. ‘It would be a way for the country to ‘really become a partner in Ukraine’s future in a way that’s sustainable, but also would be I think the best security guarantee they could ever hope for… much more than another pallet of ammunition.’
But Zelenskyy last week refused to sign the initial version of the deal amid reports it was more exploitative than the conditions imposed on Germany by Allied powers following the conclusion of World War I. Waltz’s comments came hours after Vice President J.D. Vance warned Zelenskyy against attacking Trump publicly, telling DailyMail.com exclusively that ‘badmouthing’ the president in public would only backfire.
‘The idea that Zelenskyy is going to change the president’s mind by badmouthing him in public media, everyone who knows the president will tell you that is an atrocious way to deal with this administration,’ said Vance during an exclusive interview in his West Wing office.
Hours later, Trump doubled down in his own attacks during a speech in Miami at a Saudi-backed investors conference where he slammed Zelenskyy as a ‘dictator’ and a ‘comedian’ who cratered his country. And on Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Vance stuck up for Trump again, saying his ultimate goal is peace in Europe.
‘Peace is in the interest of Russia, in the interest of Ukraine, in the interest of Europe,’ Vance stated. Trump is a ‘very good negotiator, very good businessman’ and he’s a ‘smart statesman’ to tackle these complex issues, he added.
‘I really believe we’re on the cusp of peace in Europe for the first time in three years because we have leadership from the Oval Office and we haven’t had it for four years in this country.’
The back-and-forth is occurring as US is refusing to co-sponsor a draft UN resolution marking three years since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine that backs Kyiv’s territorial integrity and condemns Russian aggression, three diplomatic sources told Reuters.
Kellogg’s trip to Kyiv coincided with recent feuding between Trump and Zelenskyy that has bruised their personal relations and raising questions about diplomatic efforts toward peace talks. On Wednesday, Zelenskyy accused Trump of living in a Russian-made “disinformation space.” Trump responded by calling Zelenskyy “a dictator without elections.”
Nikiforov gave no other reason other than that the cancellation was in accordance with U.S. wishes.
The row is a major political crisis for Ukraine, which has used tens of billions of dollars of US military aid agreed under the previous US administration to weather Russia’s invasion and also benefited from diplomatic support.
