Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a statement released on X on Wednesday evening, appeared to be trying to spread some oil on troubled waters after President Trump's statement earlier - but the effort may fall flat.

Emotions have run high today. But it is good that 5 countries met to bring peace closer. Ukraine, the USA, the UK, France and Germany. The sides expressed their views and respectfully received each other’s positions. It’s important that each side was not just a participant but… pic.twitter.com/lDFV5WK8tw

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 23, 2025

The X post continues:

The sides expressed their views and respectfully received each other’s positions. It’s important that each side was not just a participant but contributed meaningfully. The American side shared its vision. Ukraine and other Europeans presented their inputs. And we hope that it is exactly such joint work that will lead to lasting peace. We are grateful to partners. Ukraine will always act in accordance with its Constitution and we are absolutely sure that our partners in particular the USA will act in line with its strong decisions.

The fact that meetings are happening is good. It's as the old saying goes, it's better to jaw, jaw than to war, war. But note the one party that President Zelensky doesn't mention: Russia. There won't be any peace deal unless Russia agrees to it. And as of this writing, it's looking a lot like Tsar Vladimir I is going to insist not only on keeping Crimea, but also a lot of the Ukrainian territory Russia now holds.

Here's the odd bit from Zelensky's X post: He includes an image of a United States Crimea Declaration - from 2018, during President Trump's first term, and only four years after Russia annexed Crimea. That statement, released by then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, reads in part:

The United States calls on Russia to respect the principles to which it has long claimed to adhere and to end its occupation of Crimea. As democratic states seek to build a free, just and prosperous world, we must uphold our commitment to the international principle of sovereign equality and respect the territorial integrity of other states. Through its actions, Russia has acted in a manner unworthy of a great nation and has chosen to isolate itself from the international community.

To which Russia has, in the years since, essentially replied, "So what?"

That statement from SecState Pompeo is now seven years old. It's an odd thing that President Zelensky is now leaning on an old document like this. A lot has changed since then. A lot of people have died. A lot of property has been destroyed. Just or not, right or not, fair or not, Ukraine isn't getting Crimea back. They will be lucky to go back to the status quo ante. The United States isn't going to spend money on this war forever. As I wrote earlier:

Right or wrong, and there's plenty of wrong to go around in this affair, there doesn't appear to be any scenario in which Ukraine gets Crimea back. Tsar Vladimir I won't give it up, and Ukraine can't take it back by force. If there is to be any negotiated peace in this deal, it looks like Crimea is off the table. President Zelensky can refuse to legally recognize that until he's blue in the face, and it's not going to change a thing.

That's the reality that Ukraine is facing.

See Also: President Trump Trashes Volodymyr Zelensky on Crimea

New: Vladimir Putin Announces Easter Ceasefire - but Does He Mean It?

It's looking very unlikely that Ukraine is going to get Crimea back. That's one thing that Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukraine are probably just going to have to learn to live with.

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