Trump claims Zelenskyy is ready to give up Crimea in potential boost to Ukraine peace talks

President Donald Trump has said he believes his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy is prepared to give up his claim to Crimea as part of a ceasefire deal to bring to an end his country’s three-year-long war with Russia.

When asked if he thought the Ukrainian president was ready to cede the peninsula, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014, Trump replied, “I think so.” If Zelenskyy were to agree, it would mark a major shift Ukraine’s stance on giving up land for peace.

In what looks to be a potentially pivotal week for efforts to bring at least a pause to fighting in Ukraine, upbeat comments from the Trump administration and Zelenskyy over the weekend were added to by Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s spokesperson Monday, who said that Kremlin was ready to begin peace negotiations with Washington and Kyiv.

Trump met with Zelenskyy in Vatican City on the fringes of Pope Francis’ funeral Saturday. Speaking to journalists Sunday as he boarded Air Force One in New Jersey, the president said he believed a ceasefire deal could be on the horizon as he urged Putin to “stop shooting, sit down and sign a deal.”

“We have the confines of a deal, I believe, and I want him to sign it and be done with it and and just go back to life,” Trump added.

Asked separately by a reporter how the meeting went, Zelenskyy described it as “really productive,” but declined to further elaborate. Noting that he also met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, Zelenskyy added that he wanted to “continue such meetings to bring peace to Ukraine.”

Trump said his Ukrainian counterpart had appeared “calmer” during the meeting in what was likely a reference to the public clash between the two world leaders during the Ukrainian president’s White House visit back in February.

Zelenskyy has long maintained that Ukraine can not relinquish its claim to Crimea. He did not immediately appear to respond to Trump’s remarks, but any acquiescence would mark a significant change in his stance.

The Ukrainian president has come under increasing pressure to do so. On Friday, one of Ukraine’s most prominent politicians, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko conceded that his country may have to give up territory to Russia if it wants to achieve a peace deal.

While the Trump administration has been accused of being more lenient towards the Kremlin during ceasefire discussions, the U.S. president’s tone following Saturday’s meeting added to comments last week that he was “very disappointed that missiles were flying, by Russia,” and suggest a shift in his view of the war.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged Trump’s comments in a briefing Monday, but said Russia’s “special operation continues” as he maintained that Moscow was prepared to begin the negotiation process with Ukraine and Washington.

Even so, Ukrainian officials reported continued shelling overnight, including in the Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions, as well as in Kherson city.

“The Russians talk a lot about their alleged readiness to accept American proposals, but so far, there have been no signs of the Russian army preparing for real silence,” Zelenskyy said in an overnight address.

North Korea separately confirmed for the first time Monday that its troops were fighting alongside Russians in Ukraine.

Peskov also claimed Monday that Russia has recaptured Kursk with the help of those soldiers from Pyongyang and in doing so also marked the first Russian acknowledgement of their involvement in the war. Ukraine denied Kursk has been retaken, saying its defensive operations continued in some areas.

If Russia were confirmed to have retaken the region, it would remove a key Ukrainian bargaining chip in any ceasefire talks.

Speaking with NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio there were “reasons to be optimistic” about the possibility of a deal, but he cautioned: “We’re close, but we’re not close enough.”

He said the coming week would be “very critical” for the White House as it looks to determine “whether this is an endeavor that we want to continue to be involved in.”