President Donald Trump left Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders anxious following a call on Wednesday about Trump’s significant meeting in Alaska with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump will fly to Anchorage on Friday to meet Putin face-to-face and try to negotiate a ceasefire and eventually bring the Ukraine war to a close.

The U.S. president reiterated to Zelensky that he would likely need to concede some Ukrainian territory to Russia to halt the three and a half year military assault.

Zelensky has remained resistant, saying afterward that he warned Trump that ‘Putin is bluffing’ about wanting to end the war. 

The Ukrainian leader also said that no decisions about territory could be made without Ukraine in the room. 

European leaders echoed Zelensky’s sentiment – and said that Trump basically agreed to those terms.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is hosting Zelensky in Berlin, stated that Europe’s leaders are making every effort to ensure that Trump’s meeting with Putin ‘proceeds in the right way.’

At the Kennedy Center Wednesday, Trump rated the call with Zelensky and European leaders a ’10,’ calling it ‘very friendly.’ 

‘We had a very good call, he was on the call, President Zelensky was on the call, I would rate it a 10,’ Trump told reporters. 

When asked why Zelensky was excluded from the Alaska summit, Trump said it was ‘always going to be’ just the U.S. leader and Putin. 

He said Friday’s meeting is simply ‘setting the table’ for a future trilateral summit between Putin, Zelensky and Trump.

‘If the first one goes OK, we’ll have a quick second one,’ Trump said. ‘I would like to do it almost immediately and we’ll have a quick second meeting between President Putin and President Zelensky and myself, if they’d like to have me there, and that would be a meeting where maybe it could be absolutely worked.’

French President Emmanuel Macron, who Axios reported told Trump that ‘a meeting is a very big thing to give to Putin,’ came out afterward and said the U.S. president hoped to get a ceasefire out of the sit-down. 

Macron also said ‘no serious territorial exchange schemes’ are currently on the table.  

On Wednesday, the Times of London reported that a West Bank-like option was being floated as a way to deal with occupied Ukrainian territory. 

Russia – like Israel does with the Palestinian West Bank – would have military and economic control of the territory under its own governing body. 

The White House quickly swatted down that report to the Daily Mail. 

‘This is total fake news and sloppy reporting by The Times, who clearly has terrible sources. Nothing of the sort was discussed with anyone at any point,’ White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said Wednesday in a statement. 

During the 2024 campaign, Trump pledged his supporters that he would end the Ukraine war on ‘day one,’ as Republican support for the conflict has dwindled. 

Once in office, the issue has caused the most dramatic clash in Trump’s Oval Office – a late February fight with Zelensky in front of the press. 

That relationship has since improved, while Trump has become more skeptical of Putin. 

He credited that development to first lady Melania Trump, who has pointed out Putin’s continued bombing campaigns of Ukrainian territory after having friendly conversations with the U.S. president. 

In turn, Trump has started to squeeze Russia more economically. 

Last week, the president announced that he’d hit India with an additional 25 tariff over the country’s decision to buy Russian oil. 

Trump further threatened Russia during his Wednesday event announcing the Kennedy Center honorees.

He was asked what would happen if Putin refused to end the war. 

‘There will be consequences,’ Trump said. ‘I don’t have to say,’ he answered when asked for specifics.

‘There will be very severe consequences,’ the president reiterated.