Europe holds strong positions in negotiations to prevent a bad deal for Ukraine. Donald Trump should not be allowed to rewrite history.
This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, Margus Tsahkna, in an interview with RND.
"If Europe and Ukraine are united, and the Ukrainians are strong enough not to accept a bad deal, the United States will have to agree with Europe's position at the negotiating table. This war is already in Europe, and we can end it only together," he said.
According to him, Europeans have many ways to put pressure on Russia during negotiations.
"They want to return €220 billion in frozen assets and lift sanctions on the Russian economy. Both of these are in our hands, not the Americans'," he said.
The minister noted that Europe is currently in a very strong position, but this position must be defended.
"Putin adheres to his main motive for the war. For Russia, this war is not just about capturing territory in Ukraine, but also about changing the entire European security architecture. Putin wants to end NATO's presence in the region, but that is fundamental to our security. Therefore, we cannot allow a bad deal to be made without strong influence from Europe and Ukraine. This is unacceptable. We must make Ukraine strong enough to decide whether to accept a deal or not," he added.
Tsahkna agreed that US President Donald Trump is rehabilitating Putin.
"Of course, that’s how it looks right now. Trump seems to not take seriously the crimes committed by Putin in Ukraine. We must not allow Trump to rewrite history in pursuit of a quick deal. Unfortunately, we see that negotiations are already taking place, and soon there will be talks between the two presidents on equal terms," he said.
According to him, the US does not see Russia as the aggressor.
"We must impose economic pressure and sanctions on Russia to ensure that Moscow does not have a more advantageous position at the negotiating table. If Russia, and then the US, want to talk about Europe and Ukraine, decisions cannot be made without our consent," the minister emphasized.
