Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Saturday that he will travel to Washington, D.C., on Monday for a meeting with President Donald Trump, following Trump’s recent talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Zelensky said the purpose of the meeting is to “discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war” in Ukraine.
"On Monday, I will meet with President Trump in Washington, D.C., to discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war. I am grateful for the invitation," Zelensky wrote on X.
Trump and Zelensky reportedly spoke by phone for an hour and a half while Trump was aboard Air Force One, returning to the White House after a nearly three-hour meeting with Putin in Alaska on Friday. According to Zelensky, the call began as a one-on-one discussion that lasted over an hour before several European leaders joined in. Zelensky said Trump shared key takeaways from his meeting with Putin and expressed strong support for Trump’s proposal to hold a trilateral summit between the U.S., Ukraine, and Russia. Leaders who later joined the call included NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Following the phone call, the European leaders issued a joint statement reaffirming their steadfast support for Ukraine.
“Leaders welcomed President Trump’s efforts to stop the killing in Ukraine, end Russia’s war of aggression and achieve just and lasting peace,” the group said.
President Trump confirmed the phone call with Zelensky, describing it as going "very well," and noted that if Monday’s meeting with Zelensky also goes well, a meeting with Putin will be arranged and "potentially, millions of people’s lives will be saved."
"It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times do not hold up," Trump wrote on Truth Social.