Ukrainian President Zelensky Says He Won’t Meet With Putin Without U.S.-Backed Peace Plan

Latest Developments

• Zelensky Won’t Meet With Putin Absent Common Peace Plan: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared on February 14 that he would not meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, until the United States and its European allies agree on a common plan to end the three-year-old war. Addressing U.S. reluctance regarding Ukraine’s possible accession to NATO, Zelensky said that Ukraine would need to double its army to 1.5 million personnel if membership of the Western alliance remains closed off.
• Zelensky Meets With Vance: Zelensky also met with Vice President JD Vance, whose speech to the Munich Security Conference contained only a passing reference to the ongoing Russian invasion. Zelensky reported that the pair had held a “good conversation,” adding: “We need to speak more, work more, and prepare a plan to stop Putin and finish the war.” Asked by a reporter how the United States would respond if Ukraine is not willing to hold talks with Putin, Vance replied that a “senior team” was managing the attempt at negotiations, adding that he wanted to preserve the “optionality” of participating.
• Hegseth Says Return to Pre-2014 Borders ‘Unrealistic’: The meeting between Vance and Zelensky came two days after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Brussels meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group that while Washington supported a “sovereign and prosperous Ukraine,” the present battlefield configuration meant “recognizing that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective.” He added that the “United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement,” asserting that “any security guarantee must be backed by capable European and non-European troops,” although he later clarified that “everything is on the table.” Meanwhile, Trump himself held a phone call with Putin on February 13, saying afterward that their conversation had been “lengthy and highly productive” and that the two leaders had “agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately.”

FDD Expert Response

“Despite all the excitement over the Trump-Putin phone call, we remain far from a deal. Putin continues to demand Ukrainian capitulation on terms that Zelensky couldn’t accept even if he wanted to. Putin’s maximalist demands lie beyond his military means, yet he says he will continue fighting until they are achieved. So long as this remains the case, Washington’s best option is to increase pressure on the Russian economy while helping Ukrainian forces exhaust Russia’s offensive potential. Meanwhile, U.S. policymakers should think through how the United States can fulfill the role it will need to play, alongside Europe, to deter a follow-on war. Ukraine will need a substantial amount of American arms, though there are ways to reduce the burden on U.S. taxpayers. And even without U.S. combat troops on the ground in Ukraine, a European-led peacekeeping force would likely require U.S. support to be feasible.” — John Hardie, Russia Program Deputy Director

“The Kremlin seeks to use American eagerness for peace and negotiations to achieve its longstanding objective of subjugating Ukraine. For Putin, any ceasefire may just be an interlude before another war. If this trick succeeds, that will be the result of our own self-deception and less because of Putin’s ability to deceive us. We must not trick ourselves into believing we understand our enemy by assuming that he thinks like us. Putin only understands the language of power.” — Ivana Stradner, Research Fellow

“President Zelensky cautioned President Trump that Vladimir Putin is a ‘liar, and you can count on it.’ He would know. Since taking office, every promise Putin has made to him has been broken. Zelensky’s red lines are clear: firstly, no decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine, and secondly, no agreement that merely allows Russia to rearm and resume its aggression in the future.” — Peter Doran, Adjunct Senior Fellow

FDD Background and Analysis

“Trump and Hegseth are Part Right. We Cannot Have Minsk 3.0,” by Ivana Stradner

“Trump Must Keep Arming Ukraine if He Wants a Good Peace Deal,” by RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery and John Hardie

“OPCW Investigation Confirms Russia’s Likely Use of Chemical Weapons Against Ukraine,” by Andrea Stricker