Trump Has Handed Part of Ukraine to Putin on a Silver Platter, Says Austria’s Foreign Minister

Austria claims that Trump has handed part of Ukraine to Putin on a silver platter. The Austrian Foreign Minister announced that Trump essentially surrendered Crimea and eastern regions of Ukraine to Putin, allowing the peninsula to be recognized as Russian as part of a settlement.

In an interview with Welt, Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s stance on the Ukraine issue. “Ukraine wants peace, Russia does not. If President [Vladimir] Putin were truly interested in peace, he would already be negotiating a ceasefire,” she said, adding, “President Trump, in effect, handed Crimea and several eastern regions to Putin on a silver platter and excluded Ukraine’s membership in NATO.”

At the same time, the minister believes that it is becoming increasingly difficult for Russia to conduct military operations, and that “time is working against them.”