Leaders Discuss Security Guarantees, Not Territory Redrawing at Ukraine Meeting

AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS

US President Donald Trump, his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and seven European leaders expressed optimism after a meeting at the White House on Monday to work to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

European officials said the hastily convened talks reflected a sense of urgency among many leaders to align with Trump on ending the war — but also their concern about being left out of the process.

What you need to know:

Meeting and participants: Trump and Zelensky held an introductory meeting and talks before being joined by key European leaders, who demonstrated Western unity and support for Ukraine. The talks included the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Finland, the European Commission and NATO.

What was discussed: Zelensky said they discussed security guarantees and humanitarian issues. This included preliminary plans for Ukraine to buy American weapons through European funding, as well as to produce drones, some of which would be purchased by the United States. There was no talk of redrawing Ukrainian territory, the NATO chief said. However, Zelensky noted that he had a long conversation with Trump over a map of territories occupied by Russia and that he had “argued” with Trump “about the percentage of territory shown on the map.”

Call to Putin: Trump interrupted a meeting with Zelensky and the leaders to call Putin and convey the decisions that had been made — a move that, the Finnish president said, was “agreed” with European leaders. The Europeans did not attend the conversation. A Putin aide said the call was “very constructive” and that Putin expressed support for “direct negotiations” between Ukraine and Russia.

Putin-Zelensky meeting: Trump said he had begun arranging a meeting between Putin and Zelensky. After that bilateral meeting, Trump could join a trilateral meeting with both leaders. Putin “expressed support for direct talks between the delegations of Russia and Ukraine,” said his foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov. Zelensky said he was ready for “any format” of a meeting with the Russian president.

Better atmosphere: The atmosphere was much friendlier than during the row that erupted in February, when Zelensky was last in the Oval Office. This time, Zelensky arrived in a smart suit — not the usual military uniform that bothered Trump last time. He also brought a letter for Trump from Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska, thanking U.S. First Lady Melania Trump for her message to Putin about children suffering in the war.