He spoke on his own behalf: Trump’s team stated that advisor Lanza's stance on a compromise regarding Crimea is unofficial.

Representatives of Donald Trump assured that Republican advisor Brian Lanza did not express the official position of the elected U.S. president regarding Ukraine. Lanza, a political strategist who worked as a contractor for Trump during the campaign, stated in an interview with BBC that the new Republican administration would allegedly focus on peace, even if it meant compromises such as Ukraine relinquishing Crimea. However, such statements have already been refuted by Trump's transition team.

In response to Lanza's controversial remarks, a spokesperson for Trump's transition team noted that Trump's advisor does not represent the president and does not have the mandate to speak on his behalf, according to Reuters. Thus, his words do not reflect the official position of the Trump team.

"Brian Lanza does not work for President Trump and cannot express his position," the press secretary stated, adding that the transition team is currently only formulating policy and reviewing personnel.

It is worth recalling that Trump previously claimed he could quickly end the war but did not disclose details of possible steps. At the same time, Ukraine's official position remains unchanged: Kyiv will not agree to peace without the return of all occupied territories, including Crimea.

How such statements are perceived in Ukraine

Advisor to the President of Ukraine Dmytro Lytvyn stated that Russia is the party seeking escalation, while Ukraine consistently advocates for peace and proposes effective solutions to achieve it. He noted that the words of the Republican strategist should not be taken seriously. Lytvyn also reminded about Ukraine's strategy for a just peace.

The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council also explained that in the coming months, world media may be flooded with rumors about possible agreements to end the war in Ukraine. Head of the CCD Andriy Kovalenko pointed out that some of these are manipulations by Russian propaganda.

It is also worth noting that American media indeed report on several alleged peace plans from Donald Trump. One of them supposedly involves providing Ukraine with weapons in exchange for freezing the war and delaying Ukraine's NATO membership. This plan proposes creating a buffer zone with the support of European forces without U.S. involvement. It entails Ukraine giving up attempts to regain occupied territories and focusing on long-term peace.