Trump administration aims to secure ceasefire in Ukraine by Easter, Bloomberg reports

The administration of US President Donald Trump has informed European officials that it aims to achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine by Easter, which falls on 20 April this year.

Source: Bloomberg, citing informed sources, as reported by European Pravda

Quote: "The Trump administration has told European officials that it wants to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine by Easter, according to people briefed on the conversations."

Details: Some sources told Bloomberg that the pace of negotiations set to begin this week in Saudi Arabia, involving senior US and Russian officials, is ambitious and potentially unrealistic.

One source said that achieving a settlement by the end of this year is a far more likely scenario.

Donald Trump launched his peace initiative last week with a phone call to Russian leader Vladimir Putin and shocked European officials when his Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated that Europeans would be responsible for the security guarantees and peacekeeping forces needed to ensure Ukraine’s security after an agreement is reached.

Now, Bloomberg reports, European officials are working on a major new package aimed at increasing defence spending and supporting Kyiv.

Spending plans will not be announced before the German elections on 23 February to avoid sparking controversy ahead of the vote, officials familiar with the plans stated.

For reference: In 2025, Orthodox Christians, Greek Catholics and Roman Catholics will celebrate Easter on the same day, 20 April.

Background: 

• Several EU leaders have been invited to Paris on Monday, 17 February to begin formulating their response after US officials made it clear that there are limits to what the United States is willing to do.
• An official familiar with the preparations revealed that these talks will focus on Ukraine and the security guarantees that European countries can agree on immediately to ensure that Europe is not sidelined in the peace negotiations.
• Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s representatives will head to Saudi Arabia on Sunday, 16 February for talks with Russia.
• Reuters reported that the US has asked European countries what they need from Washington in terms of security guarantees for Ukraine.

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