It's Trump and Putin versus Zelensky and Europe

Donald Trump has clearly decided that he wants to do business with Putin, and Ukraine, like for Moscow, is in the way. It seemed likely from the start when Trump won a second term that this was the way it would end up. Trump, remember, said he would end the war in Ukraine on his first day back in the White House. What he had in mind was a quick phone call to Putin, agree the way forward and then tell Zelensky, "accept or you are on your own". It didn't happen that way for one reason or another. But now, here we are back in the same groove. Trump intends to do a deal with Putin, and Zelensky better watch out if he turns it down. There is no way Europe can fill the gap sufficiently if the US backs off totally. So, European leaders who have pledged eternal support for Kyiv will also have to back down. When this happens is not yet clear but the wheels are in motion. Trump will give Zelensky, or preferably a new leader if he can fix it, a security guarantee for the future provided the land Putin wants is handed over. This is effectively the deal Trump has been after from the beginning. He keeps on saying Zelensky could have had this deal years ago. So, in other words, it's all his (Zelensky's) fault. Will Ukraine ever agree to sign up to such a deal? Zelensky will never sign anything that gives territory to Putin on a plate. So, if Trump pushes ahead with his plan, Zelensky's days are numbered. Will the Ukrainian people, and more importantly, will the Ukrainian military who have lost so many lives on the battlefieled, be ready to sign up to this Trump deal? Everyone in Ukraine wants peace, but, surely not by surrendering to the leader whose army invaded their country.