Ukraine has had the uppoer hand in the Black Sea. But conceding to to this US-brokered deal will win Kyiv important credit from the Trump administration.

When the U.S. said it had reached an agreement to eliminate the use of force in the Black Sea, it looked like a breakthrough. Then Russia listed its conditions.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine controls the situation in the Black Sea and rejects the possibility of Russia seizing control over the trade corridor. Source: Zelenskyy in an interview with Eurovision News Quote: "They have not controlled the corridor in the Black Sea for a long time.