WASHINGTON — Ukraine peace envoy Keith Kellogg revealed Thursday that the Trump administration could turn back on military aid and intelligence sharing to Kyiv — but only once Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signs a rare minerals deal.
After Zelensky signs it, “then I think you can go forward,” Kellogg said in an interview at the Council on Foreign Relations.
“Very candidly, they brought it on themselves,” he said of the US halt of military aid, referencing the White House diplomatic blowup between the Trump administration and Zelensky that transpired on Friday.
“You don’t negotiate peace discussions in public. You don’t try to challenge the president of the United States in the Oval Office that in fact you have to side with me and not the Russians.”
Now, the only thing Zelensky can do is physically sign the document, not just say he will, to get the spout turned back on and to warm relations — but even then, the decision will still be up to Trump.
“I think we’ve seen too many, you know, starts and misses as we go forward on this,” Kellogg added. “I think that’s part of the issue.”
He also shared his perspective on what transpired on Friday when Zelensky showed up for a meeting with Trump in the Oval Office, only to leave after a shouting match with the president and Vice President JD Vance — and no mineral deal.
Zelensky came in with an objective that was “clearly not in alignment” with Trump about the role the US should play in ending the three-year war with Russia. the top Ukraine envoy said.
Kellogg said Zelensky had wanted Trump to sign an agreement “to give Ukraine an advantage over Russia” — and to “side publicly” against Russia, in a White House meeting where TV cameras trained on the world leaders were broadcasting to millions of viewers.
But siding against Russia publicly, he went on, would have “negated our objective interlocular goal.”
Trump has been vocal about wanting to be a mediator between Russia and Ukraine, with both sides making “concessions.”
Zelensky later acknowledged in a Fox News interview after the debacle that he had wanted the president to come out with a statement of support for Ukraine, given that Russia brought on the invasion that has killed hundreds of thousands of Kyiv’s troops.
Kellogg argued that not negotiating with the Russians “is no longer a viable or sustainable strategy” and that the US is also interested in securing “vital American interests” that can only come about in a “reset” with the Kremlin.
To do this, Trump will use “sticks and carrots” on both sides — including keeping sanctions on Russia, Kellogg said.
Cutting off aid until a deal is signed is a “forcing function” to make them realize they have to get to a peace deal, he went on.
Trump has yet to set up a public meeting with Zelensky to attempt another signing of the deal that would create a joint US-Ukraine economic investment in critical minerals, which the president sees as a “sort of security guarantee.”
The commander-in-chief said Tuesday he “appreciated” the letter he got from the Ukrainian president saying he would sign the deal, but has not yet said whether he’ll turn the aid back on.
Meanwhile, Vance noted Tuesday that aid could resume if there was a “private” communication channel established by the Ukrainians.
