Trump wants Ukraine to admit that Russia can keep Crimea. His peace plan puts the peninsula at the heart of talks with Putin. The exact details remain unpublished, but reports say America would recognize Russian control of the area as legal. Trump believes Crimea was lost long ago when Russia took it without major fighting.
Ukrainian President Zelensky refuses this idea completely. He points to the Ukrainian constitution, which says the country cannot give away territory. Any change needs a national vote approved by parliament. Russian officials see this legal requirement as blocking peace efforts. Changing the constitution during martial law is impossible.
Russia grabbed Crimea in 2014 when masked soldiers in green uniforms seized control. Putin first denied involvement but later admitted planning the takeover. Most Crimeans speak Russian because Soviet leader Stalin deported the native Tatar people in 1944. Russians feel connected to the warm Black Sea peninsula that belonged to them from 1783 until 1954.
Other rumored parts of Trump's plan might freeze current battle lines, leaving Russia with about 20 percent of Ukraine. This would affect four regions - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. Security guarantees from countries like Britain and France would protect Ukraine, but America would stay out of direct defense commitments.
The deal might let Ukraine join the European Union but not NATO. All American sanctions against Russia would end. The US might also take control of the nuclear power plant that Russia captured in Zaporizhzhia. Small parts of occupied Kharkiv might return to Ukraine with river access rights on the Dnipro.
Ukrainian President Zelensky refuses this idea completely. He points to the Ukrainian constitution, which says the country cannot give away territory. Any change needs a national vote approved by parliament. Russian officials see this legal requirement as blocking peace efforts. Changing the constitution during martial law is impossible.
Russia grabbed Crimea in 2014 when masked soldiers in green uniforms seized control. Putin first denied involvement but later admitted planning the takeover. Most Crimeans speak Russian because Soviet leader Stalin deported the native Tatar people in 1944. Russians feel connected to the warm Black Sea peninsula that belonged to them from 1783 until 1954.
Other rumored parts of Trump's plan might freeze current battle lines, leaving Russia with about 20 percent of Ukraine. This would affect four regions - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. Security guarantees from countries like Britain and France would protect Ukraine, but America would stay out of direct defense commitments.
The deal might let Ukraine join the European Union but not NATO. All American sanctions against Russia would end. The US might also take control of the nuclear power plant that Russia captured in Zaporizhzhia. Small parts of occupied Kharkiv might return to Ukraine with river access rights on the Dnipro.
