Trump's adviser: If Zelenskyy demands return of Crimea, he's not serious

He told BBC about this.

Lanza is a Republican strategist who believes that the Trump administration will ask Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to present his version of a ‘realistic vision of peace’.

"And if President Zelensky comes to the table and says, well we can only have peace if we have Crimea, he shows to us that he's not serious," he said. 

Lanza did not mention the occupied territories in eastern Ukraine, but said that the return of Crimea was unrealistic and ‘not a goal of the United States’.

"When Zelenskyy says we will only stop this fighting, there will only be peace once Crimea is returned, we've got news for President Zelensky: Crimea is gone. And if that is your priority of getting Crimea back and having American soldiers fight to get Crimea back, you're on your own" Trump’s adviser told BBC.

Lanza added he had tremendous respect for the Ukrainian people, describing them as having the hearts of lions. But he said the US priority was "peace and to stop the killing".

"What we're going to say to Ukraine is, you know what you see? What do you see as a realistic vision for peace. It's not a vision for winning, but it's a vision for peace. And let's start having the honest conversation," he said.

Trump's senior adviser also criticised the support that the Biden administration and European countries have provided to Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

"The reality on the ground is that the European nation states and President Biden did not give Ukraine the ability and the arms to win this war at the very beginning and they failed to lift the restrictions for Ukraine to win," he said.

• Yuri Rashkin, a US politician and public figure, noted that the Trump administration may see the lifting of sanctions against Russia as a way to end the war in Ukraine.