Trump interested in 2 points of Zelenskyy's victory plan – Financial Times

The Financial Times has reported that US President-elect Donald Trump expressed interest in two points of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Victory Plan for Ukraine during their meeting in September 2024.

Source: The Financial Times (FT), as reported by European Pravda

Details: According to the FT, Ukrainian and European officials said that Ukraine’s allies in Europe and the US – including influential Republican politicians – have given advice to President Zelenskyy regarding how to better formulate proposals that would stimulate close cooperation between the US and Kyiv rather than the US cutting off crucial aid for Ukraine.

According to people involved in the development of Ukraine’s victory plan, the plan was aimed specifically at Trump, and two of the ideas suggested by Ukraine’s allies were incorporated in it. These proposals were later presented to Trump when Zelenskyy met with him in New York in September.

One of them envisaged replacing some of the American troops stationed in Europe with Ukrainian troops after the war.

The other – first developed by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally, according to people involved in drafting the Victory Plan – proposed sharing Ukraine’s critical natural resources with Western partners.

Trump was "interested" in these two points, according to a person briefed on the meeting.

Separately, business leaders in Ukraine are also in talks with the government about offering Trump "investment screening" powers, which would allow him to effectively pick and choose who can do business in the country.

One person involved in the planning described the idea as "ABC – Anybody But China", which could play particularly well into Trump’s hands. Ukrainian industries that are dependent on Chinese technology and materials, such as telecommunications, could switch to American suppliers and attract more Western investment, according to the source. The idea is in its early stages, but some business leaders close to the president’s office believe it could appeal to Trump.

So far, Ukraine’s allies in the West have reacted to Zelenskyy’s Victory Plan, especially to the call to formally invite Kyiv to join NATO and provide it with more modern weapons, in a rather lukewarm way.

Background:

• On 7 November, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a phone call with US President-elect Donald Trump, which Zelenskyy said was "excellent". However, Ukraine and its allies are still worried that the US might withdraw its military support after Trump takes office in January.
• A Ukrainian official told Reuters that Kyiv believes that with Donald Trump's victory in the US election, the chances of Ukraine joining NATO have decreased.

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