{"id":2402671,"date":"2025-02-14T11:00:01","date_gmt":"2025-02-14T16:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-gave-zelenskyy-a-friendly-reality-check-during-their-ukraine-war-talk-report\/"},"modified":"2025-02-14T11:02:33","modified_gmt":"2025-02-14T16:02:33","slug":"trump-gave-zelenskyy-a-friendly-reality-check-during-their-ukraine-war-talk-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-gave-zelenskyy-a-friendly-reality-check-during-their-ukraine-war-talk-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Gave Zelenskyy a Friendly Reality Check During Their Ukraine War Talk: Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-gave-zelenskyy-a-friendly-reality-check-during-their-ukraine-war-talk-report%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2402671&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article\u2063 discusses a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/georgia-secretary-of-state-brad-raffenspergers-update-to-georgias-voting-machine-software-right-before-the-2020-election-was-unlawful-and-violates-any-certification-of-state-results\/\" title=\"Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger\u2019s Update to Georgia\u2019s Voting Machine Soft...e Right Before the 2020 Election Was Unlawful and Violates Any Certification of State Results\">recent phone call<\/a> between former President\u200c Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.\u200b During the call, Trump emphasized the necessity of engaging in talks with Russian President\u200c Vladimir Putin to further diplomatic efforts, despite Zelenskyy\u2019s objections that such talks would merely \u200dallow Putin to \u2062buy time. Trump acknowledged\u200c that Zelenskyy\u2019s concerns might be valid, yet he maintained that \u2063the seriousness of Putin&#8217;s intentions would soon \u200dbe revealed.<\/p>\n<p>The dialog reflects\u2063 a stark reality check from the \u200dTrump governance, as Defense Secretary Pete\u2063 hegseth also conveyed that Ukraine\u2019s\u200b demands to regain all lost territories\u2064 were unrealistic and\u200c that the focus should shift toward ensuring strong security guarantees\u200b for \u2064Ukraine. Both Trump and\u2062 Hegseth expressed skepticism about NATO membership for Ukraine, highlighting the constraints posed by Russia.<\/p>\n<p>The article emphasizes that the current territorial situation, including Crimea and parts of the Donbas region controlled by Russia before the 2022 \u2064invasion, complicates \u2062the prospect of reverting to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/europe-is-sleepwalking-into-a-war-it-cant-win\/\" title=\"Europe is Sleepwalking Into a ... It Can\u2019t Win\">pre-war borders<\/a>. It suggests that, \u200cas the conflict continues, \u200bthe dynamics will favor Russia, which possesses greater resources\u2063 and time. The piece concludes by stressing that the situation is unsustainable and that a more\u200b pragmatic deal will likely need to be reached sooner or\u2063 later.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Wishful thinking won&rsquo;t get Ukraine or Russia out of their three-year-long war &mdash; and that&rsquo;s the message President Donald Trump and his administration apparently delivered to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.<\/p>\n<p>According to a Thursday from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/02\/13\/zelensky-trump-call-putin-afraid-peace-deal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Axios<\/a>, despite Zelenskyy pressuring Trump not to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wall-street-has-its-eyes-set-on-ukraine\/\" title=\"Wall Street Has Its Eyes Set on ...\">hold high-level talks<\/a> with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a Wednesday phone call between the two leaders, Trump &ldquo;stressed there is no way around it if he wants his diplomatic efforts to be successful,&rdquo; the outlet noted.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I need to talk to Putin in order to save Ukraine,&rdquo; Trump told Zelenskyy, sources said.<\/p>\n<p>Zelenskyy, meanwhile, argued that Putin only talked to Trump because he wanted to buy time.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Putin told you he wants a deal only because he is afraid of you, because you are strong,&rdquo; Zelenskyy reportedly told Trump.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Trump reportedly admitted that Zelenskyy could be right, but that Putin could be serious and &ldquo;we will know soon.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The call came the same day Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made his first trip to Europe, where he delivered another reality check to Ukraine &mdash; calling Kyiv&rsquo;s demand for the return of all territory seized by Russia since 2014 an &ldquo;unrealistic objective,&rdquo; according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national-security\/2025\/02\/12\/hegseth-ukraine-russia-nato-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Chasing this illusionary goal will only prolong the war and cause more pain and suffering,&rdquo; Hegseth said, arguing that &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">robust security guarantees&#038;rdquo<\/a>; for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-admin-touts-big-win-negotiations-russia-sign-end-ukraine-war-near\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ukraine<\/a> would be a far more realistic objective.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, both he and President Trump have said they don&rsquo;t see membership in NATO as an option for Kyiv, with the president <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national-security\/2025\/02\/13\/hegseth-ukraine-nato\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">telling reporters<\/a> he couldn&rsquo;t see any way &ldquo;that a country in Russia&rsquo;s position&rdquo; would allow that to happen.<\/p>\n<p>Again, this might not be what the people still sporting Ukrainian flag emojis in their X user names might want to hear, but it&rsquo;s the reality of the situation.<\/p>\n<p>As for the territory currently controlled by Russia, much of it was controlled by Russia&nbsp;<em>before<\/em> the 2022 invasion; Crimea was annexed in 2014 by Moscow, despite a lack of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/oregon-bill-defines-merit-as-those-who-have-received-anti-bias-training-teachers-without-merit-may-be-laid-off\/\" title=\"Oregon Bill Defines \u2018Merit\u2019 As Those Who Have Received \u2018Anti-Bias\u2019 Training; Teachers Without Merit May Be Laid Off\">international recognition<\/a> of the legitimacy of the move, and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/russia-ready-absorb-four-ukrainian-regions-follow-annexation-major-military-move\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Donbas region<\/a> was under the <em>de facto<\/em> control of Kremlin-backed militias, with virtually no control by Kyiv, long before the invasion even began.<\/p>\n<p>Ukrainian forces have done an admirable job of controlling Russian gains &mdash; and some of those, particularly along the coast, are likely to be returned to Ukraine as part of any peace deal. However, a reset to 2014 boundaries is simply infeasible, no matter how much the war gets escalated.<\/p>\n<p>As for an international <em>cordon sanitaire&nbsp;<\/em>around Putin, refusing to talk to him about a peace deal until he comes begging to the table like a dog &mdash; this, too, is wildly unrealistic.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps Putin believes talking to Trump buys himself some time from a new president he fears more than Biden. Perhaps it&rsquo;s a realistic overture. All we know is that, one way or another, it&rsquo;s a calculated move by a notorious calculator.<\/p>\n<p>The more blood and treasure that gets spent on this war, however, the better the calculus becomes for Putin. He doesn&rsquo;t have to hold elections &mdash; and when and if he does, anyone who poses a legitimate threat to him getting somewhere above 90 percent of the farce vote will be drinking a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ap-biden-admin-makes-1st-move-russia-poisoning-putin-opponent\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Novichok<\/a> Frappuccino from a knockoff Starbucks in St. Petersburg sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n<p>Western nations, alas, don&rsquo;t have the luxury of putting off elections or poisoning opponents &mdash; and while Zelenskyy has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/ukraine-presidential-election-volodymyr-zelenskyy-war-with-russia-v2\/a-71549712\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">postponed<\/a> elections due to the war, it&rsquo;s going to be difficult for him to put them off forever, lest more voices in the free world start insinuating both rulers are different sides of the same anti-democratic coin.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, as much as Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion has been both laudable and exemplary, even the rosiest of pro-Kyiv media prognosticators can&rsquo;t help but use language like &ldquo;the grim realities of raw numbers,&rdquo; or something to that effect, when talking about the war&rsquo;s progression &mdash; euphemistic language for the fact that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ukraine-resorting-extremely-desperate-tactics-fill-military-ranks-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Russia has more money, equipment, troops, and time<\/a> to wait this one out if Zelenskyy and his allies really want to play the long game.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, one can hope this is the first of many friendly reality checks by the Trump administration in regard to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/bidens-parting-gift-trump-major-escalation-ukraine-inching-us-closer-war-russia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the trajectory of this conflict<\/a>. The status quo cannot hold, and a better deal is likely to be had sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hopeful thinking won&#8217;t resolve the ongoing three-year conflict between Ukraine and Russia, which is the message President Donald Trump and his administration reportedly conveyed to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. As reported by Axios on Thursday, despite Zelenskyy&#8217;s urging for Trump to avoid high-level discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their Wednesday phone call, Trump emphasized that such talks are essential for successful diplomatic efforts. &#8220;I need to talk to Putin in order to save Ukraine,&#8221; he allegedly told Zelenskyy. In response, Zelenskyy argued that Putin&#8217;s willingness to engage with Trump was merely a tactic to buy time, asserting that &#8220;Putin told you he wants a deal only because he is afraid of you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2402672,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Trump-v-Zelenskyy.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[35890,3634,23119,10724],"class_list":["post-2402671","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-reality-check","tag-trump","tag-ukraine-war","tag-zelenskyy"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Trump-v-Zelenskyy.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402671","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2402671"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402671\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2402675,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2402671\/revisions\/2402675"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2402672"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2402671"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2402671"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2402671"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}