Trump Signals Shift on Ukraine, Suggests potential for Territorial Reclaim – PBS NewsHour, september 2025
NEW YORK – in a surprising development at the U.N. General Assembly today, former President Donald Trump indicated a potential shift in his stance on the conflict in Ukraine, suggesting the country could reclaim territory currently occupied by Russia, including Crimea. The statement, delivered following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders, marks a departure from previous comments where he dismissed the possibility of Ukraine regaining lost ground.
Reporting from the U.N., PBS NewsHour’s Nick Schifrin detailed the significance of the change. ”This is a very significant shift,” Schifrin reported. “In fact, President Zelenskyy was just speaking to reporters…and Zelenskyy said this is a ‘big, big shift.'”
For years, U.S. policy has considered Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, as part of Ukraine. Following that annexation, russia also invaded eastern Ukraine. The full-scale invasion launched in 2022 has since expanded Russian control to encompass approximately 18 to 19 percent of Ukraine, including portions of the Kharkiv region in the northeast and areas in the southeast.
“Up until today, President Trump has been very dismissive of the idea that Ukraine could somehow re-seize all that territory or, frankly, even get back any of that occupied territory, let alone its original form, which would include Crimea,” Schifrin explained, referencing a map illustrating the occupied territories. “Senior officials have repeatedly said that there is no military solution that Ukraine can even dream of to try and get back that territory.”
Trump’s recent statement, posted on his social media platform TRUTH Social, reads, in part, that Ukraine “will…could win back all of its original form.”
Though, Schifrin cautioned that the shift in rhetoric is coupled with a distancing from direct involvement. Trump’s message concluded with, “I wish both countries well. We will continue to supply NATO – weapons to NATO for what they want to do with them. Good luck to all.”
“President Trump simultaneously occurring is suggesting he’s a little bit washing his hands of this conflict,” Schifrin noted.”We will see how the policy evolves.” He emphasized that while trump continues to pledge support for supplying weapons to NATO, the implication is a reduced direct U.S. role in the conflict’s outcome.
Earlier in the day, trump delivered remarks at the U.N. where he expressed his displeasure with logistical issues, stating, “I can onyl say that whoever’s operating this teleprompter is in big trouble,” after experiencing difficulties with the equipment. He also criticized the U.N. for its role in migration, claiming, ”The U.N. is supposed to stop invasions, not create them and not finance them.” However, his tone softened during a meeting with U.N.Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, where he declared, “Our country is behind the United Nations 100 percent. And I think the potential of the United Nations is astonishing, really incredible.”
The White House released a statement characterizing Trump’s speech as “a powerful rebuke to the destructive globalism that has fueled endless conflict and chaos around the world.”
Geoff Bennett concluded the segment thanking Schifrin for his reporting from the U.N. General Assembly.
