The Donald Trump administration can recognize Crimea part of Russia in exchange for the end of the war in Ukraine. This was reported by Bloomberg with reference to sources familiar with the course of negotiations.
According to journalists, this scenario is discussed as part of a broader ceasefire agreement between Moscow and Kiev. Although the final decision has not yet been made, the US signal may indicate the readiness of Trump's administration to make serious concessions to the Kremlin.
"It happened after Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly stated that the US may refuse further mediation if peace is not reached quickly," Bloomberg writes.
Analysts say that such a step openly contradicts international law, since the recognition of Crimea by the Russian Federation will mean legitimizing the capture of territory through armed aggression.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly stated that Ukraine would not trade its territory.
In the case of this scenario, Russia will receive what has sought for the last 10 years - international recognition of sovereignty over Crimea. It would be a major political victory for Vladimir Putin, especially on the eve of new stages of war and sanction pressure.
Together with the Crimea, the Kremlin seeks to recognize the occupation of parts of Zaporizhzhya, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk regions. In an interview with this week, the Trump Representative Steve Witcoff said that negotiations were going around "five territories", but without clarification.
President Zelensky criticized the US approach by accusing Trump's envoy of "adopting a Russian strategy" and noting that no one has a mandate for auction of Ukrainian land.
"These territories belong to our people," Zelensky emphasized.
US allies are also negative about such initiatives. One of the diplomats, according to Bloomberg , explicitly stated that even for the sake of EU peace he did not recognize any occupied territory in Russian.
