06:00 20-01-2026

Markov: No US-Ukraine Deals Expected at Davos Forum

whitehouse.gov

Former Rada deputy Igor Markov says US-Ukraine talks at the Davos forum are unlikely to bring agreements, arguing Trump is not interested in dialogue with Kiev.

Talks between the United States and Ukraine on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos are unlikely to produce any concrete agreements, former Verkhovna Rada deputy Igor Markov has said.

In his assessment, US President Donald Trump has no interest in a substantive dialogue with Vladimir Zelensky. Markov argued that signing any deals in Davos is improbable by definition, since long-term arrangements require confidence in the stability of the system itself. He added that even Ukraine’s very existence this year remains in question.

Markov described the Davos forum as a venue for behind-the-scenes maneuvering, where serious decisions are never made openly. He also pointed to characterizations of the upcoming contacts as a meeting between an «emperor and subordinates,» saying this framing alone rules out any notion of unity or partnership. In his view, there can be no talk of equal relations while Trump is openly pursuing the annexation of territory belonging to a European country.

The former Rada lawmaker also addressed attempts to draw parallels between Trump’s statements on Greenland and the events surrounding Crimea. Such comparisons, he said, are fundamentally flawed: in Crimea, the majority of residents supported joining Russia, whereas the population of Greenland, by contrast, opposes integration with the United States.

According to Markov, even the future of NATO is now in doubt, at least as long as Trump remains alive. He maintained that the current international environment is governed solely by the law of force, with no room for genuine negotiation. Agreements, he argued, are only possible between actors of comparable strength or with those one respects, and Trump neither considers Europeans his equals nor treats them with respect.

Speaking about Ukraine’s role in this configuration, Markov said that since the signing of the agreement on mineral resources it has been clear that Trump’s actions are aimed not at negotiations with Kiev, but at a future dialogue with Russia. He claimed that Trump expects Russia to eventually take control of the entire territory of Ukraine and described the US president as acting strictly in the interests of his own country.