Trump says peace agreement is attainable after meeting with Zelenskyy

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday a peace agreement for the war in Ukraine is attainable as he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders.

Trump, speaking with reporters at the White House, said all would prefer an immediate ceasefire, but that he was optimistic that an agreement could be reached to deter aggression in Ukraine.

Trump said he covered “a lot of territory” in his talk with Zelenskyy, saying the day had been successful thus far.

Speaking at the start of the meeting, Trump had said he would back European security guarantees for Ukraine and would try to work a trilateral meeting with Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump also told reporters in the Oval Office that he had spoken to Putin indirectly before the meeting.

“If everything works out today, we’ll have a trilat,” Trump said, referring to possible three-way talks among Zelenskyy, Putin and Trump. “We’re going to work with Russia; we’re going to work with Ukraine.”

Zelenskyy also expressed openness to trilateral talks.

“We are ready for trilateral as President said,” Zelenskyy said. “It’s a good signal about trilateral. I think this is very good.”

Zelenskyy also said at the start of the meeting that he was open to holding an election in safe circumstances if the war with Russia were to come to an end.

Trump put onus on Zelenskyy in social media posts

Ahead of the meeting, Trump told Ukraine to give up hopes of getting back annexed Crimea or joining NATO as he prepared to host Zelenskyy and European leaders in Washington on Monday afternoon.

After rolling out the red carpet for Putin in Alaska, Trump’s comments on social media Sunday night suggested he would press Zelenskyy hard at Monday’s meeting to end Europe’s deadliest war in 80 years. 

A firefighter works at the site of an apartment building, hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv, on Monday. (Sofiia Gatilova/Reuters)

Zelenskyy “can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Remember how it started. No getting back Obama-given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE.” 

Crimea, recognized by most countries as Ukraine territory since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, was annexed by Russia in 2014, during Barack Obama’s presidency.

Meanwhile, the war that has killed tens of thousands rages on, as Russia launched missiles and drones in overnight attacks which killed seven people in Kharkiv, including two children, officials said.  

“They hit an ordinary apartment block; many flats, many families were living here, small children, children’s playground, residential compound. There are no offices here or anything else, we lived here peacefully in our homes,” said Olena Yakusheva, a local resident, as firefighters battled a blaze in the building and rescue workers dug in the rubble.

In addition, a Russian attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia killed three people and wounded 20, the regional governor for the city said.

On the battlefield, Russia has been slowly grinding forward, pressing home its advantages in men and firepower.

European leaders called Zelenskyy ahead of meeting

The White House said Trump would first meet Zelenskyy, and then about two hours later, the leaders of Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Finland, the European Union and NATO, who flew to Washington to show solidarity with Ukraine and to press for strong security guarantees in any post-war settlement.  

Ukraine and its allies have long feared that Trump could press an agreement favourable to Moscow. However, they have taken heart from some developments, including Trump’s apparent willingness to provide post-settlement security guarantees for Ukraine.

European leaders held a call with Zelenskyy on Sunday to align on a common strategy for the meetings with Trump.

Zelenskyy has already all but rejected the outline of Putin’s proposals from the Alaska meeting, including for Ukraine to give up the rest of its eastern Donetsk region, of which it currently controls one-quarter. Ukrainian forces are deeply dug into Donetsk, whose towns and hills serve as a crucial defensive zone to stymie Russian attacks.

Zelenskyy is also seeking an immediate ceasefire to conduct deeper peace talks. Trump previously backed that, but reversed course after the summit with Putin and indicated support for Russia’s favoured approach of negotiating a comprehensive deal while fighting rumbles on.

The Ukrainian president said after arriving in Washington late on Sunday he was grateful to Trump for the invitation.

“We all equally want to end this war swiftly and reliably,” Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app. “Russia must end this war — the war it started. And I hope that our shared strength with America and with our European friends will compel Russia to real peace.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, left, walks to the Air Force Airbus A319 at Franz-Josef-Strauss Airport in Munich on Monday, ahead of a flight to Washington. (Kay Nietfeld/dpa/The Associated Press)Rocky U.S.-Ukraine relationship

Ukraine’s pressing need for U.S. weapons and intelligence sharing, some of which have no viable alternative, has forced Zelenskyy and his allies to work with Trump.  

Relations between Kyiv and Washington, once extremely close, have been rocky since Trump returned to the White House in January. Zelenskyy is seeking to avoid a repeat of the ill-tempered, abbreviated meeting in Washington held in February, where he was berated by Trump, JD Vance and a reporter from a right-wing American cable network.

Two weeks earlier, U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared to undercut leverage Kyiv might hold in future talks, saying it was unrealistic for Ukraine to return to its pre-2014 borders and that NATO membership for Ukraine would not be part of a peace deal.

WATCH l Zelenskyy, European leaders prepare to meet Trump: 

Zelenskyy, European allies to meet with Trump to discuss war in Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flies to Washington on Monday under heavy U.S. pressure to agree to a swift end to Russia’s war in his country, but determined to defend Kyiv’s interests — without sparking a second Oval Office dust-up with Donald Trump.

Trump railed on the 2024 campaign trail about the amount of military aid predecessor Joe Biden’s administration was providing Ukraine, even as much of the spending was benefiting American military contractors. The Trump administration committed no new Ukraine funding in its recent budget bill, instead brokering a deal for European countries to purchase U.S.-made weapons.

During his first presidential term, Trump was impeached in 2019 by the House of Representatives after it was revealed he tried to enlist Zelenskyy, then in his first weeks as Ukraine president, into a scheme that would smear Biden. Trump was acquitted by the Senate, but during the impeachment process continued to allege that Ukraine meddled in the 2016 U.S. election to help Democrat Hillary Clinton win, which has been dismissed by intelligence experts as a conspiracy theory.