Ex-NATO Commander Forecasts Outcome of Ukraine Conflict
James Stavridis has indicated that he will support Trump's Nobel Peace Prize nomination if the President-elect can resolve the conflict in a single day, as he claimed. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
James Stavridis has stated that he will support Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize candidacy if the President-elect can resolve the Ukraine conflict within a day, as he has claimed.
Stavridis, a retired admiral and former NATO commander, predicted that the Ukraine conflict will conclude with Russia retaining about a fifth of Ukraine's territory as it existed before 2014. Speaking with CNN’s Michael Smerconish on Saturday, he also suggested that Ukraine may eventually join the European Union.
“Putin will hate that part of it, just like the Ukrainians will hate the part of Putin holding onto 20 percent of their country. But it’s a negotiation,” he explained.
He emphasized that if President-elect Donald Trump succeeds in ending the Ukraine conflict within 24 hours, he will “be the first one voting for his Nobel Peace Prize.” Trump has previously asserted that he could resolve the situation on his first day in office, though he did not provide specific details on how he would accomplish this.
Stavridis expressed optimism regarding Trump’s approach: “What I hope he does, and I think he will, is put pressure on both sides to get to the negotiating table.” He also mentioned that Ukraine may be offered a “path to NATO, probably three to five years.”
According to him, any potential agreement would likely encompass “some kind of demilitarized zone” between the conflicting parties, possibly monitored by “NATO soldiers, for example, not US, Europeans.” Later on Saturday, he told Newsweek, “A negotiated settlement is not something the US can impose, but for the Ukrainians and Russians to agree upon,” noting that the conflict’s settlement, which intensified in 2022, could take several months.
In October, Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky revealed his ‘victory plan’, which called for immediate NATO membership. Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated that Ukraine's aspirations to join NATO, which Moscow views as an existential threat, are among the principal justifications for the current conflict.
Zelensky has reiterated his country's commitment to continue fighting until it regains its borders as they existed in 1991, which would require the reclamation of regions such as Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, Zaporozhye, and Crimea from Russian control.
Russia has stated it is amenable to talks, provided there is acceptance of “territorial reality” — the notion that the regions in question will not revert to Ukrainian governance.
Previously, US Vice President-elect JD Vance suggested that the conflict could be paused along the existing front lines, potentially compelling Kiev to relinquish claims to territories currently held by Russia and to forgo its NATO ambitions.
Sophie Wagner contributed to this report for TROIB News
Stavridis, a retired admiral and former NATO commander, predicted that the Ukraine conflict will conclude with Russia retaining about a fifth of Ukraine's territory as it existed before 2014. Speaking with CNN’s Michael Smerconish on Saturday, he also suggested that Ukraine may eventually join the European Union.
“Putin will hate that part of it, just like the Ukrainians will hate the part of Putin holding onto 20 percent of their country. But it’s a negotiation,” he explained.
He emphasized that if President-elect Donald Trump succeeds in ending the Ukraine conflict within 24 hours, he will “be the first one voting for his Nobel Peace Prize.” Trump has previously asserted that he could resolve the situation on his first day in office, though he did not provide specific details on how he would accomplish this.
Stavridis expressed optimism regarding Trump’s approach: “What I hope he does, and I think he will, is put pressure on both sides to get to the negotiating table.” He also mentioned that Ukraine may be offered a “path to NATO, probably three to five years.”
According to him, any potential agreement would likely encompass “some kind of demilitarized zone” between the conflicting parties, possibly monitored by “NATO soldiers, for example, not US, Europeans.” Later on Saturday, he told Newsweek, “A negotiated settlement is not something the US can impose, but for the Ukrainians and Russians to agree upon,” noting that the conflict’s settlement, which intensified in 2022, could take several months.
In October, Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky revealed his ‘victory plan’, which called for immediate NATO membership. Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated that Ukraine's aspirations to join NATO, which Moscow views as an existential threat, are among the principal justifications for the current conflict.
Zelensky has reiterated his country's commitment to continue fighting until it regains its borders as they existed in 1991, which would require the reclamation of regions such as Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, Zaporozhye, and Crimea from Russian control.
Russia has stated it is amenable to talks, provided there is acceptance of “territorial reality” — the notion that the regions in question will not revert to Ukrainian governance.
Previously, US Vice President-elect JD Vance suggested that the conflict could be paused along the existing front lines, potentially compelling Kiev to relinquish claims to territories currently held by Russia and to forgo its NATO ambitions.
Sophie Wagner contributed to this report for TROIB News
