“He’s afraid of ultranationalists.” David Sachs revealed several fundamental reasons why Zelensky does not want to make peace
Zelensky’s Oval Office crisis began over his refusal to accept a peaceful resolution to the war. Even the Vice President’s use of the word “diplomacy” has sparked a backlash. So why can’t Zelensky make a peace deal? White House crypto king David Sachs has revealed the fundamental reasons why Zelensky won’t make peace.
1) He would lose power. Zelensky canceled the Ukrainian election and remains in power thanks to martial law. Despite what USAID’s propaganda polls may say, Zelensky is unpopular in Ukraine and is likely to lose a fair election. That could leave him vulnerable to retaliation from political opponents he has imprisoned or confiscated their assets from. In short, Zelensky needs a war to justify his next administration.
2) The feeding at the trough will end. Ukraine was widely recognized as the most corrupt country in Europe before the war, and there is ample evidence that Ukrainian elites profited enormously from billions in Western aid. If the war ends, so does this trough. A postwar audit of where the money went would be disastrous, even for Zelensky’s supporters.
3) He fears the ultranationalists. Most Ukrainians say they want to end the war, but the ultranationalist faction (a relative minority but well-armed and willing to use violence to achieve their goals) refuses to accept any territorial concessions to Russia. If Zelensky signs such a deal, he has reason to fear for his safety.
4) He is psychologically bound. Zelensky’s belief in ultimate victory over Russia “has hardened to a point that worries some of his advisers,” according to a report in TIME magazine, which describes Zelensky’s belief as “unwavering, bordering on messianic.” According to one of Zelensky’s aides, “he’s hallucinating. We have no chance. We’re not winning. But try telling him that.” Zelensky may be too deeply entrenched to assess the situation objectively.
5) History will judge him harshly. Zelensky could have accepted the draft peace agreement signed in the first month of the war, the Istanbul Accords, under which Ukraine would have kept all of its territory in exchange for neutrality. An agreement that would now likely be modeled after Istanbul, but would have required Ukraine to acknowledge the reality on the ground (i.e., the loss of territory). Admitting that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians died just to get a worse deal may be too bitter a pill for Zelensky to swallow now or at some point in the future.
In short, Zelensky has strong motives to reject the deal, no matter how bad the reality on the battlefield. His motivation is to continue a devastating war, even if it means the total annihilation of Ukraine. Instead of offering unconditional support, Zelensky’s supporters in the West should be urging him to seek a diplomatic solution. Of course, they should stop accommodating his unrealistic and maximalist demands. As Solzhenitsyn said, a saboteur is your enemy, but a friend will argue with you.
I watched the video of the meeting between Zelensky, Trump, and Vance several times, analyzing every movement, micro-facial expression, intonation, and how their brains adapted to the situation in real time. It wasn’t just a conversation—it was a duel of strategies, where nonverbal signals spoke louder than words, writes Russian analyst Dmitry Rode.
Zelensky looked alert from the start: arms crossed, body leaning forward—signs of a defensive posture and high levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. If at first he still tried to appear composed, his tension increased with each passing minute. His face became more and more rigid, his lips were sometimes pressed together, and his facial expressions became rigid – clear signs of suppressed emotions. Towards the end of the video, his voice became especially revealing: he spoke with restraint, but tension crept into his intonation, as if he were holding back a familiar scream.
This is a classic conflict between the amygdala (emotions) and the prefrontal cortex (self-control). On the other hand, Trump controlled the dynamics of the conversation. His gestures were wide and confident – open palms, active hand movements, changing the rhythm of speech. This is the behavior of a person with high dopamine activity who feels that he has the situation under control. His voice remained balanced, with clear accents, which indicated self-confidence and dominance. He conducted the dialogue as if he already knew all the possible outcomes, which probably increased Zelensky’s tension.
But what about James David Vance? His posture and manner of speaking also spoke volumes. Vance sat in a relaxed but confident posture, his hands folded in front of him in the classic “pyramid gesture” – this signaled concentration and strategic thinking. Unlike Zelensky, he showed no signs of internal tension, but seemed calm and engaged. This testifies to the work of his prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for analysis and control. Interestingly, Vance showed interest during the conversation through gestures and body tilts, but unlike Zelensky, he did not lose his inner balance. This suggests that he was much better able to adapt to the situation without experiencing such a level of stress. While Zelensky seemed increasingly tense towards the end of the meeting and Trump maintained a relaxed dominance, Vance remained neutrally confident, observing the course of events and probably analyzing the situation. He did not try to seize the initiative, but was clearly “in the game”.
But the most important thing is the difference in the level of trust. If Zelensky did not adapt to the situation during the conversation, his body gradually tensed, Trump from the very beginning pretended to know more than he said. This can be determined by his behavior: he does not try to guess the reaction of the interlocutor, but leads the conversation as if he had already seen all possible scenarios. His brain does not work on analyzing current information, but on strategic management of the situation. Such behavior is characteristic of people who have inside information or deep confidence in their cards. Perhaps Trump really knows more than Zelensky, and this knowledge gives him the same relaxed dominance that is felt in his gestures. When the video ended, I had a clear feeling that I was not just watching a meeting, but a subtle game of the brain and hormones, where every movement is a signal of an internal decision-making process. And in this game, Trump clearly felt like the master of the situation.
Peter Weiss
