The United States is reportedly prepared to recognise Russian control of Crimea as part of the peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv. The latest development comes as US President Donald Trump has warned that his country would walk away from the mediation role if both Russia and Ukraine do not seal a deal soon. 

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A report in The Kyiv Independent stated that a final decision on the matter has not been taken, and US officials familiar with the negotiations are not ready to comment on the matter, considering the sensitivity of the ongoing talks. 

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In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea after 97 per cent of Crimeans voted in a referendum to join Russia. Crimea had been a part of Russia since 1783, when Russia under the Tsar had annexed it from the Ottoman Empire. However, in 1954 Crimea was transferred to Ukraine by the then-Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. The current dispensation of Moscow saw the agreement of 1954 as a major mistake and took over it in 2014 after supporting separatist movements in the Ukraine-control territory. The Russian mainland has no access to the open sea on the southwest side of their continent. Gaining control of Crimea gives Russia a geopolitical hegemony in the region and access to the Mediterranean Sea throughout the year. 

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Meanwhile, if US recognises Crimea, it would be a diplomatic win for Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has opposed any proposal to surrender land to Russia, including Crimea. This, despite the Trump administration stating that returning to pre-2014 borders is not possible and Ukraine must accept this. 

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Trump on Ukraine deal 

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President Donald Trump has warned that the United States could walk away from negotiating the Russia and Ukraine peace deal if matters do not progress “very shortly”, adding that his country would simply “take a pass.” "It's a vicious battle with the best equipment, the best everything, and it is brutal. 2,500 young people a week, some of them not so young, actually. They're getting older. They're getting older by the month." "But 2,500 a week, and we're going to get it stopped, ideally. Now, if for some reason one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we're just going to say you're foolish, you're fools, you're horrible people, and going to just take a pass. But hopefully we won't have to do that," the US President said.

His comments came just hours after Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after meeting officials in Paris said that the administration was reassessing the viability of continued peace talks. “We need to determine very quickly, in a matter of days, whether this is doable in the next few weeks. If it’s not, then we have other priorities to focus on,” Rubio told reporters.

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The negotiations in Paris brought together officials from the US, France, Germany, the UK, and Ukraine. In a private meeting, French President Emmanuel Macron and US envoy Witkoff also discussed what peacekeeping operations and ceasefire monitoring could be like in case of a negotiated agreement.

Nevertheless, the Russian attack on Ukraine continues as the Kremlin ended a 30-day ceasefire in attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure and launched a missile attack in Sumy last week.

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