WASHINGTON/LUXEMBOURG: US President Donald Trump said on Monday he did not think Ukraine would win the war against Russia but that anything could happen.

“They could still win it. I don’t think they will, but they could still win it,” Trump said at the White House. He added that war was a strange thing and anything could happen.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said it was wrong to pressure Ukraine to secure an end to Russia’s war, after reports US President Donald Trump pushed Kyiv to give up land.

“What we must not forget is that Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim here, so putting the pressure on Ukraine as the victim is not the right approach,” Kallas said after a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

EU disapproves of US pressure on Zelensky to cede land to Russia

Trump on Friday called on Moscow and Kyiv to stop the fighting “where they are” after talks with leaders Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky. Media reports said Trump behind closed doors pressed Zelensky to make territorial concessions to the Kremlin at a White House meeting.

The sit-down in Washington left Kyiv disappointed as Trump poured cold water on hopes the United States could supply Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles.

Trump has grown frustrated as his much-vaunted efforts to end the war in Ukraine have stalled.

“We all support President Trump’s efforts to end the war, but Putin will only negotiate seriously if he thinks he’s losing,” Kallas said. She warned that allowing the Russian leadership to “get what they want” in Ukraine would send a bad message to other potential aggressors worldwide. “If aggression pays off, it serves as an invitation to use it elsewhere as well,” she said. EU countries on Monday agreed to phase out their remaining gas imports from Russia by the end of 2027, breaking a dependency the bloc has struggled to end despite Moscow’s war on Ukraine.

Published in Dawn, October 21st, 2025