The Trump peace plan is a stitch-up on Kremlin headed notepaper that we’ll all pay dearly for: BOB SEELY
It is up to Ukraine to decide when and on what conditions peace will be discussed. Their men and women are being killed, their cities are being bombed.
Being under drone and missile attacks, as I was, is a grueling experience, and Ukraine’s collective courage is something to behold.
But make no mistake, the peace proposed by US President Donald Trump is a potentially deadly peace that will lead to greater dangers for Ukraine. This is not peace, this is delayed surrender.
By giving up well-defended fortresses near the front line and reducing the size of its armed forces, Kiev will prostrate itself before Moscow, making it too tempting for Vladimir Putin to take a second bite from the Russian bear in the years to come.
Imposing humiliating conditions on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky means Putin pockets three rewards.
First of all, he takes the lands that his armies have not captured and the cities that they have not yet destroyed. Its geographical position will be stronger because the contested land is on higher ground; Once he has this, he will have a largely straight and unobstructed road to Kiev.
Second, and most importantly, Putin knows that a bad peace will weaken Ukraine’s internal integrity. Angry soldiers will demand to know why their comrades’ blood was shed in vain.
There is much blame about who sold them and why the Russians who kidnapped their children and raped, tortured and murdered their citizens were not held accountable.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (pictured in black) with Ukrainian soldiers paying tribute to the victims of the 1932-1933 famine at the National Holodomor Museum in Kiev
BOB SEELY: The peace plan proposed by US President Donald Trump (pictured) is a potentially lethal plan that will lead to greater danger for Ukraine. This is not peace, this is delayed surrender
Third, a bad peace would significantly harm the transatlantic alliance. We in England and Europe will no longer be able to trust the USA. A hasty sale of Ukraine against Europe’s wishes would mean that the alliance would be single in name only.
Putin may threaten the Baltic republics in the belief that NATO’s collective self-defense is evaporating. Dismantling the West had long been his ambition. Other rivals such as China and Iran will also be wringing their hands.
We know from experience that appeasing dictators never works.
Czechoslovakia was offered to Adolf Hitler in 1938, but the peace for which it was traded did not last that long. A year later, the attacker came back for more.
Ukraine’s existence is at stake. Zelensky needs to walk a fine line. He can’t immediately ignore Trump’s poisoned chalice, but he can’t accept it either. He must seek a real peace in which he can live together, without sowing the seeds of destruction for his country.
Trump displayed surprising naivety regarding Ukraine. His success in Gaza was achieved by having Israel right behind him, giving him greater influence behind closed doors, but his ambivalence towards Kiev has emboldened Putin to dictate terms. The peace agreement before Zelensky may also have been printed on notepaper titled Kremlin.
The future of his nation and Europe now inevitably rests on his shoulders.
Dr Bob Seely MBE is the author of The New Total War.
