London talks collapse as U.S. renews quest for better Russia

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a statement the day before that Ukraine does not recognize Russian control over Crimea: "Ukraine does not legally recognize the occupation of Crimea... There is nothing to discuss. This contradicts our Constitution."

The current president understands the risks he may face personally—after years of saying that Crimea was supposedly surrendered by the post-Maidan leaders and acting president Oleksandr Turchynov. However, even in the dark times of Trump’s first term, he not only adopted the Crimea Declaration but also linked it to the Welles Declaration, which at one time saved the Baltic countries from being completely absorbed into the USSR—and ultimately became the document that helped Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia quickly restore their independence.

"The peace plan that the U.S. was bringing to London consisted of seven points. These included an immediate ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, and, of course, recognition of Crimea as part of the Russian Federation. Next was the start of direct negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow. And worst of all—the U.S. proposal to lift all sanctions against Moscow, with the added bonus of restoring economic cooperation between the U.S. and Russia."

It must be acknowledged that much of the insider information about the failed negotiations came from the British newspaper The Independent, which was bought in the early 2010s by Alexander Lebedev—a sanctioned Putin oligarch and KGB colonel who actively does business in occupied Crimea.

These leaks have a paralyzing effect on Ukrainians. Online, people talk about either the Chechnya path, capitulation, or write conspiracy theories like: "Zelenskyy sold us out to save his own life."

Despite the fact that Rubio never went to London, our delegates (Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha) say that "despite everything, we will work for peace."

"As agreed in Paris, we will meet with American and European counterparts who are in the British capital today. The path to peace is not easy, but Ukraine was and remains committed to peaceful efforts," Yermak wrote on his Telegram channel.

If you analyze not only the leaks from Lebedev’s newspaper but also what reputable Bloomberg and Axios wrote—the new peace proposals do not favor Ukraine at all. Moreover, under the proposed terms of the truce, Ukraine gets no benefit. We all understand that lifting sanctions from Russia will allow that ill-fated country to revive its economy and direct the funds to rebuild its army. And then, in about five years, the U.S. will have to appease Russia with new territorial concessions—Riga, Vilnius, and Zaporizhzhia.

The threat of the U.S. withdrawing from negotiations shows that Rubio and Waltz realize they’ve gotten themselves into a mess with these talks. But no one wants to publicly admit that entering them was a mistake. So Trump will have to move to plan B, where there will be much less love for Russia.

Do we want to tell Washington off and forget about it forever in response to such peace proposals? Emotionally—yes, but that won’t win the war. Likewise, territories and people do not return from occupation through peace tables and summits somewhere amid the pastoral views of Switzerland.

It’s good that our delegates plan to spend time in London negotiating, but I would like to know what exactly our own peace proposals are as of April 2025.

"Did we have any tempting offers for Trump, or at least a set of golden golf clubs?"

Not long ago, CNN showed a flattering portrait of Nikas Safronov that Trump received from Putin. The Russian dictator studied the psychology of his American counterpart—and used a cult photo for the commission—after the assassination attempt on Donald during a rally in Pennsylvania. The current U.S. president carried this photo to all rallies and posted it in virtually every campaign ad.

This has a certain effect—already now the U.S. wants to separate the Ukrainian issue from all others where they can work together with Russia. Moscow does not want to end the war—it wants to restore economic cooperation with the U.S. and bring back Western investors who are ready to turn a blind eye to the war and deaths.

What remains for Ukraine, so as not to end up in the role of "woe to the vanquished"? 

Definitely to look for ways to obtain U.S. technologies and financial-technological support from Europe. Many are tired of the war and want elections. However, there is a high chance that poor preparation for the next war will cost us our independence.

Things will definitely not get better, and we can forget about peace even of the 2017-2022 kind. As U.S. Vice President Vance said: "The border may not turn out to be the exact front line as it exists now; to stop the killings, both sides must lay down their arms, freeze the situation, and actually get down to building a better Russia and a better Ukraine."

Specially for Espreso

About the author: Maryna Danyliuk-Yermolayeva, journalist.

The editorial team does not always share the views expressed by blog authors.