In Ukraine, everyone wants the war to end. NPR has spoken to Ukrainian civilians and soldiers who welcome Donald Trump's promise to do so, a promise he alluded to in his inauguration speech.
"My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier," Trump pledged.
A recent public opinion poll also showed that more than a third of Ukrainians would accept territorial concessions in exchange for peace.
But 48-year-old Yaroslav Bazylevych worries that Trump's administration would force Ukraine to concede too much.
"Unless the U.S. gives up on Ukraine," he said, "I don't think Russia will agree to a ceasefire."
Bazylevych cannot stomach a Russian victory. Five months ago, a long-range Russian missile hit his home in Lviv, which is about 43 miles from the border with Poland — and NATO. His wife and three daughters were killed. Only he survived.
"I am struggling to find meaning in life," he said. "I feel like a tree that cannot grow leaves."
Tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers have been killed in this war, including Melaniya Podolyak's partner, Andriy "Juice" Pilshchykov, a legendary fighter pilot.
"At this point you can pick anybody off the Ukrainian street and ask them if they've lost somebody close to them and they will tell you yes," she explained. "And there's no indication that Russians want to leave Ukraine alone. So we should present the new administration with options from the point of strength, which is ridiculously difficult in these times."
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is doing his best to project that strength. But Russian forces are advancing on the frontline and continue to strike Ukraine regularly with drones and missiles.
In a rally ahead on the eve of his inauguration, Trump once again said he would end the war but appears to be prioritizing a meeting with Putin.
Bazylevych, the grieving father in Lviv, says he hopes Trump realizes that it was Russia who invaded Ukraine, and that Russia won't back down unless it is forced to.
"Russia will only agree to a ceasefire if they're on the brink of a financial or military crisis," he said, "and even then it will be temporary."
Copyright 2025 NPR
