Washington, December 9: Donald Trump on Sunday pushed Russian leader Vladimir Putin to act to reach an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine, describing it as part of his active efforts as president-elect to end the war despite being weeks from taking office. 슬롯사이트œZelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness," Trump wrote on social media, referring to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

In a television interview that aired Sunday, Trump also said he would be open to reducing military aid to Ukraine and pulling the United States out of NATO. Those are two threats that have alarmed Ukraine, NATO allies and many in the US national security community. Asked on NBC's 슬롯사이트œMeet the Press슬롯사이트� if he were actively working to end the nearly 3-year-old Ukraine war, Trump said, 슬롯사이트œI am.슬롯사이트� Bashar al-Assad, Ousted Syrian President Arrived in Moscow With His Family and Given Asylum, Say Russian State News Agencies.

He refused to say if he had spoken to Putin since winning election in November. 슬롯사이트œI don't want to say anything about that, because I don't want to do anything that could impede the negotiation,슬롯사이트� Trump said. Trump's call for an immediate ceasefire went beyond the public policy stands taken by the Biden administration and Ukraine and drew a cautious response from Zelenskyy. It also marks Trump wading unusually deeply into efforts before his January 20 inauguration to resolve one of the major global crises facing the lame-duck Biden administration.

Trump made his proposal after a weekend meeting in Paris with French and Ukrainian leaders in Paris, where many world leaders gathered to celebrate the restoration of Notre Dame cathedral after a devastating fire. None of the advisers traveling with him appeared to have expertise on Ukraine. Kyiv would like to close a deal, Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. 슬롯사이트œThere should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin.슬롯사이트�

슬롯사이트œI know Vladimir well. This is his time to act. China can help. The World is waiting!슬롯사이트� Trump added. He was referring to mediation efforts by China that many in the West have seen as favouring Russia. Zelenskyy described his discussions on Saturday with Trump, brought together by French President Emmanuel Macron, as 슬롯사이트œconstructive" but has given no further details. Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine needs a 슬롯사이트œjust and robust peace, that Russians will not destroy within a few years슬롯사이트�. Syria Crisis: Fall of Bashar al-Assad슬롯사이트™s Government 'Historic Opportunity for People' of Country, Says US President Joe Biden.

슬롯사이트œWhen we talk about an effective peace with Russia, we must talk first of all about effective peace guarantees. Ukrainians want peace more than anyone else. Russia brought war to our land,슬롯사이트� he said on Sunday in a post on the Telegram messaging app. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to Trump's post by repeating Moscow's long-standing message that it is open to talks with Ukraine. Peskov referenced a decree by Zelenskyy from October 2022 that declared the prospect of any talks 슬롯사이트œimpossible슬롯사이트� as long as Putin was Russia's leader.

That decree came after Putin proclaimed four occupied regions of Ukraine to be part of Russia, in what Kyiv and the West said was a clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty. Trump's former national security adviser, retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, warned there was no such thing as a quick fix to ending Russia's war with Ukraine. 슬롯사이트œWhat I'm worried about is this kind of flawed idea that Putin can be placated, right, that Putin will come to some kind of a deal,슬롯사이트� McMaster told 슬롯사이트œFox News Sunday."

슬롯사이트œI think it's really important for President Trump to adhere to his instinct in this connection ... peace through strength,슬롯사이트� McMaster said, adding, 슬롯사이트œHow about give them what they need to defend themselves, and then saying to Putin, You're going to lose this war?슬롯사이트� While Trump has said before that he would like to see a quick ceasefire in Ukraine, his proposal on Sunday was framed as a direct appeal to Russia. The quick responses from Ukraine and Russia demonstrated the seriousness with which they regarded the idea from the incoming American president.

Both Trump and President Joe Biden pointed this weekend to Russia's disengagement in Syria, where the Russian military largely moved out of the way while Syrian rebels overthrew the country's Russian-allied president, as evidence of the extent to which the Ukraine war has sapped Russia's resources. Biden said at the White House on Sunday that resistance from Ukraine had "left Russia unable to protect its main ally in the Middle East슬롯사이트�.

The Biden administration and other supporters of Ukraine have made a point of not being seen to press Ukraine for an immediate truce. Ukraine's allies fear a quick deal would be largely on the terms of its more powerful neighbour, potentially forcing damaging concessions on Ukraine and allowing Russia to resume the war again once it has built back up its military strength. Trump portrays himself as up to making fast deals to resolve conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East that have frustrated many of the Biden administration's own mediation efforts.

There is no prohibition on incoming officials or nominees meeting with foreign officials, and it is common and fine for them to do so 슬롯사이트� unless those meetings are designed to subvert or otherwise affect current US policy. The Logan Act bars private citizens from trying to intervene in 슬롯사이트œdisputes or controversies슬롯사이트� between the United States and foreign powers without government approval. But the 1799 statute has produced just two criminal cases, none since the 1850s and neither resulting in a criminal conviction.

In the NBC interview taped on Friday, Trump renewed his warning to NATO allies that he did not see continued US participation in the Western military alliance as a given during his second term. Trump has long complained that European and the Canadian governments in the mutual-defence bloc are freeloading on military spending by the US, by far the most powerful partner in NATO. NATO and its member governments say a majority of countries in the bloc are now hitting voluntary targets for military spending, due in part to pressure from Trump in his first term.

Asked whether he would consider the possibility of pulling out of NATO, Trump indicated that was an open question. 슬롯사이트œIf they're paying their bills, and if I think they're treating us fairly, the answer is absolutely I'd stay with NATO,슬롯사이트� he said. But if not, he was asked if he would consider pulling the US out of the alliance. Trump responded, 슬롯사이트œAbsolutely. Yeah, absolutely.슬롯사이트� Trump expressed the same openness when asked if Ukraine should brace for possible cuts in US aid. 슬롯사이트œPossibly,슬롯사이트� he said. US arms and other military support are vital to Ukraine's efforts to fend off invading Russian forces, and Biden has been surging assistance to Ukraine before leaving office.

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday announced nearly USD 1 billion more in longer-term weapons support to Ukraine. Austin spoke to his Ukrainian counterpart Sunday about the status of the war and US military backing, the Pentagon said. Russian forces kept up their grinding advance in eastern Ukraine, taking the village of Blahodatne, according to a statement Sunday by Russia's defence ministry. If confirmed, that gain would bring Russian forces a step closer toward capturing the town of Velyka Novosilka and disrupting a key logistics route for the Ukrainian army, military analysts said.

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