Semafor: Trump considers recognizing Crimea as part of Russia

The administration of US President Donald Trump is reportedly considering recognizing Crimea as Russian territory.

According to Semafor, citing two sources, recognition of the peninsula could potentially be part of a broader agreement aimed at ending the conflict in Ukraine, per Caliber.Az.

Sources indicated that the administration has even explored the possibility of the UN also acknowledging Crimea as Russian territory.

However, no final decision has been made by Trump on this matter, according to the report. The White House has declined to comment on the issue.

Previously, Trump announced that he is scheduled to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 18. The American leader expressed optimism that the conflict could be resolved.

The US is directly engaged in discussions with Kyiv regarding the terms of a potential peace agreement with Moscow, including territorial issues. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt confirmed this, stating, “This was discussed by the President's team and the Ukrainians.” However, she refrained from providing further details on the specifics of territorial negotiations.

US Assistant to the President for National Security Mike Waltz emphasized that resolving the situation in Ukraine would involve discussions on territorial concessions in exchange for future security guarantees.

“The option of territories for future security guarantees, the future status of Ukraine is envisioned,” Waltz explained.

Trump has also stated that during his upcoming conversation with Putin, he intends to address territorial concerns and the control of nuclear power plants. “I think we're going to talk about territories ... We're going to talk about power plants because that's a big issue,” he remarked.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the complexity of the territorial issue in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia. While he stated that the matter requires further discussion, he reiterated that Kyiv would never recognize Crimea, Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions as Russian.

On March 12, Zelenskyy reaffirmed that any recognition of the loss of these territories would be a “red line” for Ukraine in negotiations with Russia. He also asserted that any renunciation of these territories would violate Ukraine’s constitution.

Officials within the Trump administration have openly suggested that Ukraine may need to make territorial concessions to Russia to bring an end to the war. Trump himself has previously stated that he is open to considering Crimea as part of Russia. However, since assuming office, his administration has largely refrained from publicly detailing specific proposals for negotiations with Putin.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged the suffering endured by Ukrainians and suggested that concessions might be inevitable. “Ukrainians have suffered greatly and their people have suffered greatly, and it’s hard in the aftermath of something like that to even talk about concessions,” Rubio told reporters last week. “But that’s the only way this is going to end to prevent more suffering.”

A move by the US to formally recognize Crimea — territory that Russia invaded and illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014 — would likely provoke significant opposition from European allies and Kyiv. Zelenskyy has consistently rejected any territorial concessions. The US, Ukraine, and most of the international community continue to recognize Crimea as part of Ukraine, despite Russia’s ongoing occupation of the peninsula.

At the same time, security analysts remain sceptical about Ukraine’s ability to reclaim Crimea through military means. Even Zelenskyy admitted last year that restoring Crimea to Ukraine would likely require diplomatic efforts — an option that Russia appears unwilling to consider.

Trump first entertained the idea of recognizing Crimea as Russian territory years before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While campaigning for president in 2016 and during his first term, he repeatedly suggested he would “look at” whether the US should recognize Russian sovereignty over Crimea.

“The people of Crimea, from what I’ve heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were,” Trump said in a 2018 interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. “And you have to look at that, also.”

By Tamilla Hasanova