Politico: Trump allies held secret talks with Zelenskyy's opponents
US President Donald Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., his son-in-law Jared Kushner, TV presenter Tucker Carlson, and Trump's Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, have reportedly held behind-the-scenes talks with Ukrainian political figures opposed to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Source: Politico, a Brussels-based politics and policy news organisation
Details: Trump's son Donald Jr., his son-in-law Jared Kushner, Tucker Carlson and US special envoy Steve Witkoff are reported to have been involved in these talks.
Politico noted that these talks were part of the Trump administration's initiative to support the idea of early elections in Ukraine, despite the fact that opinion polls show that Zelenskyy currently maintains a high level of support among Ukrainians.
Previously:
On 6 March, Politico reported that four high-ranking associates of US President Donald Trump held secret talks with Yuliia Tymoshenko, leader of Ukraine’s Batkivshchyna party, and members of European Solidarity, the party of former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko.
On 18 March, German Bild journalist Paul Ronzheimer said that he had interviewed former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who accused Zelenskyy’s team of steering the country towards dictatorship and undermining the rule of law.
Background:
- US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz previously stated that the United States needs a Ukrainian leader who can engage with both Washington and Moscow to end the war.
- US House Speaker Mike Johnson also stated on Sunday 2 March that Zelenskyy must "come to his senses and come back to the table in gratitude, or someone else needs to lead the country to do that".
- Trump repeatedly called Zelenskyy a dictator and indicated that Zelenskyy must act quickly if Ukraine wants to survive as a country.
- However, the day before Zelenskyy's visit to the US, Trump said he "can't believe" he could call him a "dictator".
- Meanwhile, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin continues to claim that a change in Ukraine’s leadership is a prerequisite for negotiations with Russia, once again distorting Ukrainian legislation and questioning Zelenskyy’s legitimacy as president.
- On 3 March, Zelenskyy said that changing the head of state would be a difficult process and emphasised that he saw his mission as ending the war and securing NATO membership for Ukraine.
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