Officials in Ukraine fear the worst-case scenario, according to the German tabloid

The leadership in Kiev is bracing for a "worst-case scenario" in which US President Donald Trump cuts off all American support, the German tabloid Bild has reported, citing anonymous sources within the Ukrainian government.

Trump has reportedly increased pressure on Ukraine to quickly accept Washington's "final offer" to resolve the conflict. He has also warned that if negotiations between Moscow and Kiev stall, the US may "take a pass" and withdraw from its role as a mediator.

"What is on paper and what is being signaled to us in the negotiations is unacceptable," Bild wrote on Thursday, quoting a Ukrainian diplomat.

"We are preparing for the worst-case scenario... and that means an end to US support," another unnamed government insider told the paper.

The US president has been pushing for a resolution to the conflict, while also seeking a minerals extraction agreement with Ukraine to help offset the billions of dollars Washington has spent on military and financial aid. Trump temporarily halted military supplies and intelligence sharing with Kiev following a public dispute with Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky at the White House in February.

On Wednesday, Trump reiterated that Zelensky - whom he once described as a "dictator without elections" - has been "more difficult to deal with" than Russian President Vladimir Putin. The remark came after Zelensky publicly rejected a reported key provision of the US peace framework, insisting earlier this week that Kiev will not even discuss formally recognizing Crimea as Russian territory.

According to Bild, some officials in Kiev hope that Trump's personal jabs at Zelensky were merely his way to apply pressure. "Our hope was that it was Trump's negotiating tactic," the outlet cited a Ukrainian government insider as saying. The report added that Kiev is now trying to renegotiate with Washington while simultaneously seeking support from European sponsors.

Kiev is still receiving armaments pledged by the previous US administration, but no new aid packages have been authorized since Trump took office, Zelensky said on Monday. His recent pleas for additional Patriot batteries and missiles have also gone unanswered.

Moscow has maintained it is open to peace talks, provided its core security demands are addressed. Russia opposes any NATO presence on Ukrainian soil and has demanded that Kiev recognize Russia's new borders and abandon its plans to join the US-led military bloc. Moscow has repeatedly condemned the continued flow of Western armaments as detrimental to any lasting peace.

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The Russian government has also indicated it will not accept a temporary freeze of the conflict, which will only lead to renewed hostilities later on, citing Ukraine's multiple violations of an Easter ceasefire and an earlier US-mediated moratorium on strikes against energy infrastructure as proof of Kiev's untrustworthiness.

(RT.com)