Washington (AP) President Donald Trump claims to have started the process of setting up a face-to-face meeting between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin to talk about a method to put a stop to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The president made the declaration soon after he spoke with Putin over the phone on Monday while hosting Zelenskyy and other prominent European leaders to talk about his efforts to put an end to the bloody conflict. The negotiations took place in the midst of widespread fear on the continent that Trump is pressuring Ukraine to make compromises that would only give Putin more power.
Shortly after extensive discussions with Zelenskyy and the European leaders came to a conclusion, Trump posted on social media, “I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy.” That meeting will be followed by a Trilat, which will consist of me and the two presidents. Once more, this was an excellent first step in a war that has been raging for nearly four years.
Whether Putin has truly committed to such negotiations was unclear.
Putin and Trump discussed the continuation of direct negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian teams, according to Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, who was quoted by Russia’s state news agency Tass. According to Ushakov, they also talked about the possibility of intensifying direct talks between Russia and Ukraine.
After the White House meeting, Zelenskyy told reporters, “We will ask the United States to act accordingly if Russia does not demonstrate a will to meet.”
In an appearance on Fox News, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who was present at the White House negotiations, emphasized that the United States and Europe will impose further tariffs and penalties on Moscow if Russia does not cooperate in direct negotiations with Ukraine.
Prior to any meeting with Putin, Zelenskyy had stated that he wanted Russia to agree to a truce. However, on Monday, he stated that if the Ukrainians began to impose conditions, the Russians would follow suit.
For this reason, I think we should meet without any restrictions and consider how this path to war’s conclusion might progress, Zelenskyy stated.
In earlier discussions with Zelenskyy and the European leaders, Trump stated that the two presidents of the fighting nations should meet in person to discuss a possible ceasefire and who will be responsible for regaining Ukrainian territory that Russia has captured.
Trump stated, “We will allow the president to approach and speak with the president and we will observe the outcome.”
Trump seemed to lean toward Putin’s demands that Ukraine make concessions over land acquired by Russia, which currently holds about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory. This was a change from remarks he made shortly after meeting Putin last week.
Questions about US and NATO involvement
While meeting with Zelenskyy, the leaders of France, Britain, Germany, Italy, and Finland, as well as the president of the European Commission and the head of NATO, Trump also declared on Monday that he would support European security guarantees for Ukraine.
Trump refrained from pledging American forces to work together to strengthen Ukraine’s security. Instead, he stated that all of those specifics will be worked out with EU leaders and that there would be a security presence like to NATO.
They have strong feelings about providing protection, and we will assist them in doing so, Trump stated.
Deep U.S. engagement in the new security guarantees is essential, according to Zelenskyy.
According to Zelenskyy, it is crucial that the US send a clear message, namely that they will be one of the nations that assist in coordination and take part in providing security assurances for Ukraine.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry denied the notion of a potential NATO peacekeeping mission in Ukraine in a statement made Monday prior to the White House meetings. Speaking on behalf of the ministry, Maria Zakharova cautioned that such a situation might result in additional escalation and unpredictability.
The atmosphere of Trump’s encounter with Zelenskyy was very different from their previous meeting in the Oval Office in February. Following a terrible moment in which he and Vice President JD Vance expressed dissatisfaction with Zelenskyy’s lack of appreciation for U.S. military help, Trump abruptly ended meetings with the Ukrainian delegation and temporarily halted certain aid for Kyiv.
Zelenskyy opened Monday’s meeting by presenting a letter written by his wife, Olena Zelenska, on behalf of Trump’s wife, Melania. Trump hand-delivered a letter from the U.S. first lady to Putin during the Alaska summit, pleading with him to take into account the children affected by the conflict and put a stop to the bloody three-and-a-half-year war.
A conservative journalist criticized Zelenskyy for wearing a long-sleeved T-shirt to the Oval Office during his February encounter. He showed up with a buttoned shirt and a dark jacket this time. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, Zelenskyy has claimed that his generally less formal wardrobe is an act of solidarity with Ukrainian forces.
We’ll see in a little while, maybe a week or two weeks from now, if we’re going to be able to resolve this or if this terrible conflict will carry on, Trump stated.
European leaders came to Washington with the intention of protecting Ukraine and the continent from Moscow’s growing aggression.
Trump said ahead of Monday’s meeting that Ukraine could not reclaim Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, igniting a war that eventually resulted in its larger invasion in 2022.
“We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably,” Zelenskyy replied in his own post late Sunday. He stated that peace must be permanent, unlike the situation that existed eight years ago when Putin utilized the annexation of Crimea and a portion of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine as a launching pad for a fresh assault.
European heavyweights in Washington
European leaders indicated that establishing a short-term truce is still possible. Trump abruptly shifted to a stance supported by Putin after meeting with him on Friday, abandoning his call for a rapid ceasefire and stating that he would seek to secure a lasting peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine.
The French and German leaders pushed the U.S. president to press Russia for a ceasefire, but they also commended Trump for creating a route to peace at the beginning of Monday’s meeting.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated, “I hope to see a ceasefire from the next meeting, which should be a trilateral meeting.”
Trump reaffirmed that while a more comprehensive, war-ending peace deal between the two nations is certainly possible, everyone would undoubtedly prefer an immediate ceasefire while we strive for a long-term solution.
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Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine, was Kullab. Contributing reporters were Nicole Winfield in Rome, John Leicester in Le Pecq, France; Illia Novikov in Kyiv; Dasha Litvinova in Tallinn, Estonia; Farnoush Amiri in New York; Chris Megerian and Darlene Superville in Washington; and Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England.
