Ukraine and U.S. Relationship Revives Amid Peace Talks with Russia

Ukraine’s top advisor, Andriy Yermak, says that talks with U.S. officials are going well again after a tough meeting between President Zelenskiy and President Trump last month. Yermak explained that two discussions about a possible ceasefire in Saudi Arabia helped show the U.S. that Ukraine wants to work with Trump to end the ongoing war with Russia.

After a tense meeting at the White House on February 28, where Trump and Vice President JD Vance felt disrespected, Ukraine is making efforts to better its relationship with the U.S. A phone call between Trump and Zelenskiy on March 19 was described as “great” by Yermak.

They are still figuring out if these talks will lead to actual agreements or if Trump will decide to grow closer to Russia instead. Yermak said they showed their seriousness in Saudi Arabia, while he believes Russia is just making it difficult.

He commented, “We are friends and partners with America, and this is what we aimed for.” Meanwhile, Russia is adding conditions to any peace deal, making it tough to agree. They want an end to sanctions in exchange for stopping attacks in the Black Sea.

Yermak pointed out that Ukraine advocates for peace without conditions, unlike Russia. He stated, “President Trump wants to end this war, and that’s great… Russia does not want to end this war.” He added that for real peace to happen, Russia must first stick to agreements, starting with a ceasefire.