By Kanishka Singh and Steve Holland
In an announcement from Washington, Volodymyr Zelenskiy revealed his plans to visit the U.S. capital this coming Monday to engage in talks with Donald Trump. This comes right after Trump had extensive discussions with the Ukrainian president alongside NATO and European leaders, following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Interestingly, the much-anticipated meeting between Trump and Putin didn’t lead to any concrete agreements regarding the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Despite that, both leaders portrayed their discussions as constructive before wrapping up.
As Trump was making his trek back to Washington – he landed early Saturday as per the White House – he held a very lengthy phone conversation with Zelenskiy and several European allies. Zelenskiy highlighted that their chat lasted over 90 minutes, calling it “long and substantive.”
The Ukrainian president expressed strong support for Trump’s idea of a trilateral meeting involving Ukraine, the U.S., and Russia. He mentioned discussing encouraging news regarding America’s commitment to enhancing Ukraine’s security during his conversation with Trump.
“Ukraine is keen on handling crucial matters at a leadership level, and a trilateral format could be the key. I’m set to meet President Trump in D.C. on Monday to dive into the details aimed at halting the violence and the ongoing war,” Zelenskiy posted on X.
According to Axios reporter Barak Ravid, who cited a source, Trump suggested during his conversation with Zelenskiy and European leaders that Putin seems more focused on striking a comprehensive deal to finally end the war rather than pursuing a ceasefire.
Trump reportedly stated, “A quick peace deal is preferable to a mere ceasefire,” during the call, as per Ravid, who referred to a source without revealing their identity.
At the same time, Reuters could not confirm this report right away.
In the meantime, important figures such as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, French President Emmanuel Macron, and leaders from Germany, Finland, Poland, Italy, and the UK were involved in this teleconference, where Trump briefed them about the Putin summit.
