US Envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg has defended President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend aid and intelligence sharing with the warring country.
Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations event in Washington, Kellogg expressed belief that the push is to get Ukraine to engage in diplomatic activities.
He added that it’s a forcing function to get to the realisation that “we wanted to go to a peace discussion.”
Kellogg asserted that one of the reasons for US’ decision to stop sharing intelligence with Ukraine was for the Ukrainian government to realize how serious the US administration was about ending the war. He stated, “The best way I can describe it is sort of like hitting a mule with a two by four across the nose. You get their attention.”
“I made it very clear when I was in Kyiv, the potential for this…They got fair warning that was coming. I told them, and they were told last week as well.
“They have an ability with the assets they’ve got to continue to prosecute the fight, but… let’s be clear about it. …If you take away support like that, of course it, it’s important, we know that. But that’s one of the reasons why it was done. And I think as a result of that, they realise we’re serious and they need to get serious about it as well.”
Keith Kellogg
He asserted that the heated exchange between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump at the Oval Office was “entirely preventable.”
“President Trump was very magnanimous in that for the first 30 minutes, I’d ask you to go back and look at the tape, not once, but two or three times, and everything he did. And then it went … south real quick.”
Keith Kellogg
No Way Forward Until Mineral Deal Is Signed
Moreso, Kellogg also offered his reasoning on why Ukraine should seriously consider signing the minerals deal with US a priority.
“We tried to get across President Zelensky and his team: look, when you get involved economically with somebody, I don’t care if it’s setting a McDonald’s hamburger franchises or the precious metals, you invest yourselves, diplomatically, militarily, economically in the future of this country.
“And that’s what we’re trying to get across.”
Keith Kellogg
He added that the deal was a big one for US, because President Trump is a transactional leader and “transactional starts with economics.” “And so we thought this [would be] a good start for Ukraine,” he added.
“Look, my experience working with [Trump] is. It’s sort of like, if all of you get a contract. When you sign a contract for a car, for a house. Before you go forward, you have a signed contract.
“The reason he [Zelenskyy] came to the White House was to sign a document that was going to say, this is us going forward. It’s not signed. My point would be, and my personal belief be, you don’t move forward until you get a signed document, period…He had an option to do that when I was in Ukraine, they didn’t do it; they had the option to do it last week, and didn’t do it.”
Keith Kellogg
When told that Zelenskyy has now repeatedly offered to sign the deal, Kellogg retorted, “There is a difference between offering to do it and doing it. Sign the document.”
When asked if Ukraine would get aid and intelligence back on once it signs the deal, Kellog remarked that it is up to the President Trump and it is going to be his call.
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