Trump Suggests Talks Between Zelensky and Putin Next

After hosting talks for several hours at the White House on Monday with President Volodymyr Zelensky and a contingent of European leaders, President Trump said he's trying to set up a meeting between Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin. That would be followed by a meeting of both leaders with Trump—who spoke with Putin on the phone during and after Monday's talks—at which they could agree to a permanent end to the war on Ukraine, Trump said, per CBS News. Developments include:

• Next meetings: Zelensky said at a press conference in Lafayette Park after the White House sessions said he's willing to meet with Putin. He said whether Trump would join them later would depend on the first meeting, per the New York Times. He said no date or location had been set. Putin's foreign policy aide said his boss and Trump had agreed only to have senior aides conduct direct Russia-Ukraine talks.
• Europe's lobbying: French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and other leaders tried to cast their goals as the same as Trump's, per the Washington Post—suggesting a ceasefire and US security guarantees for Ukraine are supported by Trump. But the president suggested the war can end without a ceasefire, and wouldn't quite say what he might do to aid Ukraine's defense in a peace deal. Trump again described Putin, who rejected a ceasefire at the Alaska summit, as eager to stop the fighting. Of a ceasefire, Trump told the Europeans, "As of this moment, it's not happening."
• Security guarantees: The Europeans stressed the need for security guarantees for Ukraine to protect against future aggression and seem to see it as important to their nations, as well. "When we speak about security guarantees, we speak about the whole security of the European continent," Macron said, per the AP.
• Trump's response: "During the meeting we discussed Security Guarantees for Ukraine, which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America," Trump wrote afterward on Truth Social. He also generally described the day's talks as productive.

• Territory: Trump had a map of Ukraine displayed on an easel during the meeting showing front lines and combat areas. Zelensky said later to reporters that he later had a long conversation with Trump in which he told him he did not fully agree with the percentage of Ukrainian territory the map showed as under Russian control, per the Times.
• Doubts: "I am not convinced that President Putin also wants peace," Macron told reporters after the meeting. "His ultimate goal is to gain as much territory as he can, to weaken Ukraine." German Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany returned to a stalemated issue: "The next steps ahead are the more complicated ones," he said. "I can't imagine the next meeting will take place without a ceasefire."