Overview
- Asked by a New York Times reporter if Volodymyr Zelensky has any negotiating cards now, President Donald Trump answered “No.”
- Trump said the absence of his support would be a complete catastrophe for the Ukrainian leader.
- He reiterated a position he first voiced in February that Zelensky lacks leverage in talks with Russia.
- Russian state-linked agency RIA Novosti published and amplified the comments on January 12.
- Radio Svoboda reported that Zelensky said a draft security guarantees text is being readied for possible signing at a future meeting with Trump and noted earlier interview excerpts in which Trump indicated U.S. readiness to back postwar guarantees for Ukraine.