Fact check: Trump has betrayed Ukraine, by locking them and Europe out of peace talks. Russia is going to be emboldened and more of Europe will see war before the end of the decade

1. Summary of the results

The situation is more complex than the original statement suggests. While there are indeed concerns about Ukraine being sidelined in peace negotiations, several key developments have occurred:

• Trump and Putin have held discussions about potential peace talks, with Trump describing it as a "great" call with a "good possibility of ending" the war ^[1]
• European diplomats, including EU official Kaja Kallas, have explicitly labeled Trump's approach as "appeasement" ^[2]
• Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has expressed skepticism about the negotiations, stating that "Putin does not want to end the war" ^[3]

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original statement omits several crucial pieces of context:

• The US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has stated that NATO membership for Ukraine is not realistic, which has caused concern among European allies ^[4]
• Putin currently controls one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, and there are concerns that Trump might legitimize these gains through negotiations ^[5]
• European leaders, particularly from Latvia, emphasize that Russia needs to be "weakened on the battlefield" to achieve meaningful peace ^[3]
• Defense ministers from the UK, Lithuania, and Germany have specifically expressed concern about Ukraine's exclusion from negotiations ^[4]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original statement contains several oversimplifications and potential biases:

• While it's true that European leaders are concerned, they haven't been completely "locked out" - they are actively pushing back against what they see as concessions to Russia ^[4]
• The statement about "more of Europe seeing war" is speculative and not directly supported by the available sources
• Some analysts draw parallels between the current situation and historical events like Chamberlain's appeasement of Hitler ^[6], but this comparison may oversimplify a complex diplomatic situation

Who benefits from these narratives:

• Pro-Russian interests benefit from any narrative that legitimizes territorial gains and sidelines Ukraine from negotiations ^[5]
• Trump's administration benefits from presenting these talks as a potential diplomatic breakthrough ^[1]
• European defense contractors and NATO-aligned politicians benefit from maintaining a harder line against Russia ^[3]