One thing Donald Trump knows for sure is who to blame whenever things go south. This week, when his efforts to end the war in Ukraine went nowhere again, the president provided a bizarre explanation.
Reuters had asked him what was standing in the way of a peace deal, and he answered with one word: “Zelensky.” Yes, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Contrary to Trump’s statement, the Ukrainian President has long been trying to engage in peace talks. Meanwhile, Russian missiles and drones are still pummeling its cities.
And yet, according to the 79-year-old U.S. president, the real obstacle to peace isn’t Vladimir Putin, whose forces crossed the border almost four years ago, but Ukraine’s own president.
Trump even insists that Putin is eager for a deal. Ukraine, apparently, is “less ready” to get there. And of course, Russian officials echoed Trump’s view on this.
Meanwhile, his European allies argue that it is, in fact, Moscow that is dragging out negotiations so that it can keep seizing Ukrainian territory and avoid tougher sanctions.
Exclusive: Trump told Reuters that Ukraine — not Russia — is holding up a potential peace deal, a stance that sharply contrasts with European allies, who argue Moscow has little interest in ending the war. https://t.co/imjPdVZGXP pic.twitter.com/U8mvB6vLbb
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 15, 2026
Before this, Trump promised he could end the Ukraine war “in a day” if he got elected for a second term. But when he did come back to the office, those deadlines slipped, and the war intensified with threats.
Last year, there was a tense confrontation between Trump and Zelensky in the Oval Office. The latter had straight-up refused a proposed deal that would have granted the U.S. access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals.
After Zelensky left Washington, Trump briefly froze military aid and intelligence sharing. Since then, the U.S. has tried to focus on post-ceasefire security guarantees and the idea that Ukraine might have to give up parts of the eastern Donbas region.
Zelensky has rejected that too, pointing out that Ukraine’s constitution won’t let it surrender territory. Trump, however, has framed that as stubbornness and even said that Zelensky is “having a hard time getting there.”
On the ground, though, Moscow launched a hypersonic Oreshnik missile into western Ukraine near the EU border in 2026. They struck infrastructure in the Lviv region. Western officials soon realized that they weren’t ready for peace either.
Russia attacks Lviv with Oreshnik medium-range missiles.
Just a few kilometers from the border with NATO territory.
The world has seen for years that the EU and NATO fail to react, so Putin can continue to escalate. pic.twitter.com/XyHNp1yO6R
— Jürgen Nauditt 🇩🇪🇺🇦 (@jurgen_nauditt) January 9, 2026
And Ukraine isn’t the only place where Trump’s ambitions are meeting realities. Phase two of his peace plan has just begun in Gaza, and it’s already questionable. Hamas is expected to disarm, yet again, and Israel hasn’t said that it will fully withdraw.
There are also plans for a “Board of Peace” chaired by Trump himself to help the region. The ceasefire in Gaza is fragile at best. Can real peace find its way while the U.S. looks for its next scapegoat?
