Ukrainians worry

In Kyiv, Ukrainians worry that Trump will seek to end the war on Putin's terms

From CNN's Svitlana Vlasova

Residents of Kyiv have reacted with concern, anger and defiance after US President Donald Trump spoke warmly about his phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, and indicated his desire to end the war quickly – potentially by ceding some Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine to Moscow.

“For Ukrainians, this is a negative sign. And I think that no one will just let it go,” Oleksandr Sokhatskyi, a financial consultant in Kyiv, told CNN on Thursday of the prospect of Russia being awarded Ukrainian land. “Or maybe (the United States and Russia) are just testing whether we will swallow it and continue to be silent, or whether we will express our opinion in some negative way.”

Some Ukrainains who spoke with CNN expressed hope that a positive peace deal could be agreed – but few expected that to be the case. And several said they felt Putin was influencing Trump to dance to his tune as the US president seeks to end the conflict quickly.

“Trump said the war would be over in 24 hours and it’s been a while. I don’t see any prospect (of ending the war) anytime soon,” said 70-year-old Liudmyla Bilozerova.

“I would like to believe that everything will work out. Ukraine wants peace. This is the most important thing,” added Viktor, a pensioner. “It’s bad that they bypass Ukraine, negotiate with Putin, and the EU isn’t invited to the talks.”

“The surrender of territory is the most sensitive issue,” Viktor said, stressing that Ukrainians want to return to the borders the country enjoyed after its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 until 2014, when Russia seized Crimea. “We cannot understand what they (Putin and Trump) are talking about behind our backs.”

Trump’s phone call with Putin raised concern across Europe that he would rush to reach a deal that is unpalatable to Kyiv. Asked if he views Ukraine as an equal member of the peace process on Wednesday, Trump said: “Um, that’s an interesting question.”

Earlier Pete Hegseth, Trump’s Secretary of Defense, told NATO defense ministers it was unrealistic for Ukraine to join NATO, or for it to reclaim all of the territory Russia has annexed since it first invaded the country’s east in 2014.

“We know that Russia is very duplicitous, and they can play nice. But when it comes to actually making concessions and making peace, they actually never (do),” Yuliya Kazdobina, who works for the Kyiv-based foreign policy think tank Ukrainian Prism, told CNN. “No matter how much we want peace, I don’t think it’s possible, because Russia has not changed its mind and it’s not going to change its position.”

“Given how many victims this war has already brought, and to end it on someone else’s conditions… then why did these (Ukrainian troops) die and why did they defend these territories?” said Sokhatskyi. “We should not give up our territories. Because it (would mean) that we forget about those guys who died. And then for what did they die?”