‘Conflict of interests’: Trump declined an invitation from Zelensky to visit Ukraine

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has declined an invitation from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to visit Kyiv.

Trump made this statement in an interview with Newsmax.

According to Trump, the current White House administration is currently engaging with the Ukrainian authorities, and his visit could potentially create a conflict of interests. He expressed his respect for President Zelensky but felt that it would be inappropriate to visit Ukraine at this time.

“Right now, the Biden administration is dealing with him, and I wouldn’t want to create a conflict of interests”, – he mentioned.

However, in recent months, some Republican Party presidential candidates have visited Ukraine, including former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Vice President of the United States Mike Pence. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, has also visited Kiev.

Zelensky had extended an invitation to Trump to visit Kiev on November 5, mentioning that he could explain in 24 minutes to the former American leader that achieving a peaceful resolution would not happen in 24 hours.

This invitation was made on the American television channel NBC News. Among other questions, Zelensky was asked whether Trump would support Ukraine if he were to lead the U.S. again next year, to which the Ukrainian President replied twice, “The truth is, I don’t know.”

Zelensky also revealed that he hadn’t spoken with Trump since his departure from the White House in early 2021, emphasizing that what matters is not who is in power in the U.S., but how the American people perceive the situation in Ukraine.

Trump had previously claimed in the summer that he could end the conflict in Ukraine if he were elected president in 2024, suggesting that he could persuade Vladimir Zelensky to reach a peaceful agreement with Moscow. He also stated that he could convince Russian President Vladimir Putin to come to the negotiating table.

In early November, Zelensky mentioned that ordinary citizens and politicians in Western countries were becoming weary of the conflict in Ukraine, which could affect the amount of assistance Kiev receives. However, he also emphasized that the West had no other choice but to support Ukraine.

In early November, the American publication NBC News released a lengthy article asserting that EU countries and the U.S. had begun pushing Kiev towards a peaceful agreement with Moscow. The authors of the article believed that the conflict in Ukraine had reached an impasse, necessitating all possible efforts to bring it to a conclusion. It was suggested that Kiev might have to make certain concessions in order to achieve peace. The authors also mentioned that the West might offer guarantees of security to Ukraine, although full NATO membership might not be granted.