US President Donald Trump said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could end the war with Russia quickly if he accepts that Ukraine will not take back Crimea or join NATO.

Posting on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately if he wants to, or he can continue to fight.”

He added, “Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!”

Trump’s comments come ahead of his White House meeting on Aug 18 with Zelensky and European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen. Trump recently also met Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump referred to the year 2014, when Russia took over Crimea during Barack Obama’s presidency. At that time, Ukraine did not respond with force, and the West also did not intervene militarily. This is why Trump described it as Crimea being taken “without a shot being fired.”

After arriving in Washington on Sunday night, President Zelensky said Ukraine is determined to seek a reliable peace. Posting on X, he wrote, “We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably.”

Zelensky stressed that peace must not mean giving up land again. “Peace must be lasting. Not like it was years ago, when Ukraine was forced to give up Crimea and part of our East part of Donbas, and Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack,” he said.

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