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United States President Donald Trump has met with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in high-stakes peace talks that could reshape Europe.
Trump is pressing for a quick end to Europe’s deadliest war in 80 years, and Ukraine and its allies worry he could seek to force an agreement on Russia’s terms after Trump rolled out the red carpet in Alaska — literally — for Putin, who faces charges from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes which Russia denies.
So what happened at Trump and Zelenskyy’s meeting, and what does it mean for the war in Ukraine?
Zelenskyy makes a rare appearance in a suit
Trump greeted Zelenskyy warmly outside the White House, expressing admiration for Zelenskyy’s black suit, a departure from his typical military clothes.
When they last met at the White House, Zelenskyy faced criticism for his choice of dress from reporters, after their last appearance there descended into disaster when Trump and vice president JD Vance criticised Zelenskyy in an extraordinary public dressing-down.
This time, six months on, Zelenskyy received a warmer reception.
When a reporter asked Trump what his message was to the people of Ukraine, he said: “We love them.” Zelenskyy thanked him, and Trump put his hand on Zelenskyy’s back in a show of affection before the two men went inside to the Oval Office.
Despite Trump’s movement towards Russia in recent days following his summit in Alaska with Putin, Zelenskyy struck a deferential tone, expressing gratitude more than once for the US’ support.
The two presidents took questions from the media in the Oval Office before meeting in private.
Zelenskyy was also backed by the leaders of the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Finland, the European Union and NATO, who travelled to Washington to demonstrate solidarity with Ukraine and push for strong security guarantees for the country in any post-war settlement.
Following their one-on-one discussion, Trump and Zelenskyy made a joint appearance with the European leaders ahead of planned multilateral talks.
Zelenskyy described the one-on-one discussion as “very good” and said they had spoken about the importance of US security guarantees for Ukraine.
Donald Trump plans to talk to Vladimir Putin after his meetings with Ukraine and European leaders. Source: AP / Julia Demaree Nikhinson
Promises made, but divisions emerge
Trump said the US would help Europe in providing security for Ukraine as part of any deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
But he also suggested to reporters he no longer believed reaching a ceasefire was a necessary prerequisite for striking a peace agreement, backing a position staked out by Putin and opposed by Zelenskyy and most European leaders.
“When it comes to security, there’s going to be a lot of help,” Trump said, adding that European countries would be involved. “They are a first line of defence because they’re there, but we’ll help them out.”
“This is very important, that the United States gives such a strong signal and is ready for security guarantees,” Zelenskyy said.
Trump said he and Zelenskyy had covered “a lot of territory” during their discussion. He also again proposed a three-way summit among Putin, Zelenskyy and himself aimed at reaching a peace deal, which Zelenskyy said he would support.
Trump said in the Oval Office he liked the concept of a ceasefire, but they could work on a peace deal while the fighting continued.
“I wish they could stop, I’d like them to stop,” he said. “But strategically that could be a disadvantage for one side or the other.”
European leaders travelled to Washington to demonstrate solidarity with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Source: SIPA USA / Aaron Schwartz
During the later appearance, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pushed back on that suggestion.
“I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire,” Merz said. “So let’s work on that and let’s try to put pressure on Russia.”
Trump calls Putin, says arrangements being made for Zelenskyy-Putin meeting
Trump said he started arrangements for a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy after a subsequent call with the Russian president.
He said security guarantees for Ukraine — provided by the European countries with coordination with the US — were discussed during the call.
“At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskiy,” Trump said, adding that Vance, secretary of state Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff would make arrangements between the two countries.
Putin’s presence was felt during the meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy, in the days after the US president hosted him for talks in Alaska, a former Russian colony.
During this round of negotiations, Trump said repeatedly he believes Putin wants to end the war.
Russian attacks overnight on Ukrainian cities killed at least 10 people, in what Zelenskyy called a “cynical” effort to undermine talks.
Trump has rejected accusations the Alaska summit had been a win for Putin, who has faced diplomatic isolation since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“I know exactly what I’m doing, and I don’t need the advice of people who have been working on all of these conflicts for years, and were never able to do a thing to stop them,” Trump wrote on social media.
Trump’s team has said there will have to be compromises on both sides to end the conflict. But the president himself has put the burden on Zelenskyy, saying Ukraine should give up hopes of getting back Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, or of joining the NATO military alliance.
Zelenskyy has already all but rejected the outline of Putin’s proposals from the Alaska meeting. Those include handing over the remaining quarter of its eastern Donetsk region, which is largely controlled by Russia.
Any concession of Ukrainian territory would have to be approved by a referendum.
Russian assault on Ukraine continues
Ukraine and its allies have taken heart from some developments, including Trump’s apparent willingness to provide post-settlement security guarantees for Ukraine, though the details remain unclear.
The war has killed or wounded more than a million people from both sides, including thousands of mostly Ukrainian civilians, according to analysts, and destroyed wide swaths of the country.
Putin faces an arrest warrant from the ICC over the alleged abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children, adding controversy to Trump’s decision to invite him to Alaska. Zelenskyy said he and Trump discussed the issue of missing children during their meeting. Russia, which is not part of the ICC, denies the allegations.
Russia has been slowly grinding forward on the battlefield, pressing its advantages in men and firepower.
Officials in Ukraine said a drone attack on a residential complex in the northern city of Kharkiv killed at least seven people, including a toddler and her 16-year-old brother. Strikes in the south-eastern city of Zaporizhzhia killed three people, they said.
Ukraine’s military said its drones had struck an oil pumping station in Russia’s Tambov region, leading to the suspension of supplies via the Druzhba pipeline.
— With additional reporting from Reuters
