Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky agreed on Monday to the idea of holding a trilateral meeting with Vladimir Putin in an attempt to reach a peace agreement to end the conflict in Ukraine, which began in February 2022 after Russia’s invasion.
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The meeting during Monday afternoon was the first part of a marathon diplomatic day, in which later the presidents of the United States and Ukraine met with the most important leaders of Europe, who arrived in an unprecedented manner at the White House to support Zelensky and express their concerns about security on the continent.
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What did Trump and Zelensky say about a possible meeting with Putin?
“I think if everything goes well today, we will have a trilateral (meeting) and I believe that (with it) there will be a reasonable possibility of ending the war when we do it,” said Trump in front of Zelensky from the Oval Office.
In this sense, the President of the United States urged to work with both Kiev and Moscow to reach an agreement that allows to end the fighting on the Ukrainian front. “We will have lasting peace. I hope it is immediate. I hope they don’t have to continue (the attacks),” said the US President.
Trump once again argued for a broader peace agreement instead of a shorter truce. “I like the concept of a ceasefire for one reason: because it immediately stops people from being killed,” he said, reiterating that he hopes the attacks will cease.
The President of the United States supports the idea of Vladimir Putin, raised at the Alaska Summit last Friday, that Ukraine should cede territory to Russia in exchange for peace.
For his part, Zelensky said that Ukraine is “ready” to hold a trilateral meeting. “I believe we have shown that we are strong people and we support the idea of the United States, personally from President Trump, to stop this war,” he emphasized in statements to the press.
The Ukrainian leader pushed for his country to receive more weaponry, mainly Patriot batteries, through a program funded by European allies, amid an increase in attacks by Moscow. “We appreciate this program and this opportunity,” he said.
Asked about the security guarantees to Kiev, Trump explained that this point is still in the negotiation phase with NATO allies, but that Washington “will get involved” in the process. “We will discuss it today, but we will provide them with very good protection and security,” said the Republican president.
A meeting very different from the one in February
The conversation between Trump and Zelensky was very cordial, very different from the embarrassing incident at the end of February, when the President of the United States and Vice President JD Vance harshly criticized the Ukrainian in front of the media. This time, although Vance was in the Oval Office, he remained essentially silent.
This time, Trump even praised Zelensky for wearing a formal black suit instead of his usual military attire, which apparently also bothered the U.S. president back in February. In turn, the Ukrainian president was very careful in choosing his words and not contradicting Donald Trump.
In the meeting, in addition to Vance, the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and the special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin in Moscow two weeks ago, were also present.
At the beginning of the meeting, Zelensky shared a letter from his wife Olena to the US First Lady, Melania Trump, after she had made the same gesture with Putin in a letter asking to end the conflict for the sake of the children.