2026-02-13 15:44, updated 2026-02-13 16:42
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2026-02-13 15:44
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2026-02-13 16:42
The United States is increasing pressure on Ukraine to make concessions to Russia during peace talks, the New York Times reported on Friday. The goal of Donald Trump's administration is to end the nearly four-year-long war before the summer, the daily claims, citing Ukrainian officials.
Such reports appeared before the next round of negotiations in the Ukraine-Russia-USA format, which – according to the Kremlin's Friday announcements – are to be held next week in Geneva.
“NYT” notes that the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has already raised the alarm that Washington puts more pressure on Kyiv than on Moscowexpecting Ukraine to give the green light for territorial concessions.
The daily reminds that last week The Ukrainian leader linked the Trump administration's desire to quickly end the war with the November midterm elections in the US. He also warned that due to Washington's goal of ending the war by June, the White House “will probably put pressure on the parties (belligerents – PAP) in accordance with its schedule.”
Both Ukrainian officials and analysts agree that Russia shows no signs of wanting to end its invasion of Ukraine – adds the newspaper. Moreover, Russia has enough resources to continue the fight and advance on the front.
It is not known what Washington will do if Kiev refuses to give Moscow part of its territory or hold presidential elections, notes “NYT”. The latter have become a point of contention between Kiev and Washington, as President Trump and representatives of his administration have repeatedly declared that they expect Ukraine to hold the elections.
“They are using the war not to hold elections, but I believe that Ukrainians (…) must have this choice,” Trump said in an interview for the Politico website published in early December.
However, for a struggling country, organizing the election of the head of state in the current conditions is a very controversial issue. Zelensky and officials in Kiev have repeatedly warned that voting during martial law, with millions of internal and external refugees and occupation, around 20 percent state territory seems to be unfeasible. These are just some of the barriers facing the Ukrainian electoral process.
Nevertheless, at the end of 2025, Zelensky ordered the parliament to prepare regulations enabling elections to be held during the war. A working group has already been established in Ukraine whose task is to develop a draft law initiating the electoral process in war conditions. The NYT wrote that a high-ranking Ukrainian parliamentarian announced on Thursday that the plan would be presented in the coming weeks.
A day after the end of another round of trilateral peace talks, Reuters reported on February 6 that negotiators from Ukraine and Russia were talking about concluding an agreement in March. However, the agency noted, citing sources familiar with the matter, that such a goal seems unlikely due to territorial disputes. It is also about the status of the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant occupied by Russians.
The Russian plan includes, among others: Ukrainian troops leaving the entire Donbas, although Moscow does not control the entire region. Kiev has repeatedly declared that it will not agree to such conditions for ending the war, warning that giving up these lands will embolden the Kremlin to new aggression.
Marcin Przydacz on BBC: to end the war, pressure must be put on Russia, not Ukraine
The head of the Office of International Policy of the President of the Republic of Poland, Marcin Przydacz, emphasized on Friday in an interview with the British station BBC News that in order to end the war in Ukraine, pressure should be put not on this country, but on Russia.
Asked about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's recent statement that the U.S. has set a June deadline for Ukraine and Russia to end the war, Przydacz expressed his opinion that President Donald Trump will want to achieve some tangible result in his efforts to achieve peace before the November congressional elections.
– I believe that President Trump will want to achieve some positive result before the midterm elections, but the question mark remains whether Russia really wants progress in the negotiations. But if the Euro-Atlantic community wants to achieve some positive result, the pressure must really be put on Moscow, not Ukraine, Przydacz said.
He admitted that due to this time pressure, the Trump administration will certainly also put pressure on Zelensky, although he assessed that he is coping well with the pressure put on him, and that any possible peace agreement will have to be submitted to a referendum in Ukraine. He repeated his call for increasing economic sanctions against Russia.
– The less money it has to wage the war, the more willing it will be to end it – emphasized Przydacz.
Asked whether Poland is not afraid that increased attention to security in the northern region, as evidenced by the new Arctic Sentry mission, will reduce NATO's involvement in protecting the eastern flank, Przydacz emphasized that European security issues must be treated holistically.
– As NATO, we must have a 360-degree approach to threats, because they may come from the north, east, but also from the south. Of course, those from the east are the most visible, because Russia is constantly attacking Ukraine, and Belarus is also trying to destabilize, but we cannot lose sight of the fact that Russia, and perhaps also China, may increase their presence in the High North, Przydacz said, emphasizing that Poland supports NATO's involvement also in these areas. (PAP)
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