Pistorius slams Trump’s peace plan as 'capitulation' for Ukraine

Kyiv "clearly understands that it may eventually have to part with some territory to achieve a sustainable ceasefire reached in good faith."

"But they certainly should not — and must not — go as far as the latest proposal by the US president," Pistorius said.

"Ukraine could have obtained a year ago what is now included in this offer. This looks like capitulation. I don't see any added value."

Crimea and Ukraine peace talks

On April 22, Axios, citing sources, reported that Donald Trump presented a "final offer" to resolve Russia’s war against Ukraine. It includes de jure U.S. recognition of Russia’s control over the Crimea and de facto recognition of Russia’s occupation of parts of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya oblasts. The plan also rules out Ukraine’s NATO membership and proposes lifting sanctions against Russia.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded by saying that Ukraine will not recognize the occupation of Crimea, and that all rumors about Trump’s "proposals" do not represent the official position of the United States.

Zelenskyy also recalled the 2018 Crimea Declaration, in which the United States affirmed Ukraine’s sovereignty over territories seized by force and rejected Russia’s attempted annexation of Crimea.

On April 23, Trump claimed that Zelenskyy was "complicating" negotiations with his statements about Crimea and that the situation for Ukraine was "terrible." Trump added that Zelenskyy’s insistence on not recognizing Russia’s occupation of Crimea was "seriously harming" peace negotiations, arguing that "Crimea was lost many years ago."

On April 25, Trump said in an interview with Time magazine that Crimea will "remain with Russia" under a ceasefire agreement, and claimed that Zelenskyy "knows this."