Does Trump’s Nobel Prize hope to shape Ukraine’s discussions? What we know now.
President Donald Trump’s rush of Ukrainian peace contract raises concerns between European leaders and President Voldymir Zelensky. This is what we know.
- President Trump met with Ukrainian President Zelensky and other European leaders to discuss the ongoing conflict with Russia.
- Trump gets caught up in a hot microphone that suggests Putin wants to make a deal for him.
- Following the meeting, Trump reached out to Vladimir Putin and attempted to arrange a meeting between Putin and Zelensky.
President Donald Trump was caught up in a hot microphone during an August 18 meeting with European leaders in the White House.
Ukrainian President Voldy Mie Zelensky and seven other European leaders gathered in Washington, D.C., hoping that the conflict will approach four years and advance towards peace between Russia and Ukraine. The meeting follows an in-person meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump held in Alaska on August 15th.
When the leaders gather for a group photo, it appears Trump intends to be private about Putin.
“He wants to make a deal for me,” Trump told French President Emmanuel Macron in exchange. “Do you understand? It’s so crazy you can hear it.”
Did they make a deal? Here’s what you need to know about what happened in the meeting:
What happened in the meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump?
Zelensky’s trip to the White House in August had far fewer fireworks than his February visit, which was denounced by Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
In addition to Zelensky and Macron, German Prime Minister Friedrich Merz, Finland President Alexander Stabb, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary-General Mark Latte, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and British Prime Minister Kiel Starmer attended the summit on August 18th.
In place of the military suit that he painted comments in February, Zelensky met with Trump in an oval office ahead of the wider group of foreign leaders. He also thanked Trump for criticizing Vance for not doing Zelensky during his previous oval office spat.
Trump then met with European leaders in the White House East Room and said he knew “in a week or two” if he could have a contract to stop the battle.
After the day of meeting with European leaders, Trump called Putin and urged him to meet Zelensky. Trump saw it as a step in the right direction.
“Everyone is very pleased with the possibility of peace in Russia/Ukraine. At the end of the meeting, I called Putin and began an arrangement for a meeting between Putin and President Zelensky,” he wrote about the true society. “After that meeting was held, we will become myself, in addition to the two presidents. This was also a very good, early stage in the war that has been going on for almost four years.”
The conference showed strong European unity, but it was unclear whether great progress had been made towards peace. Trump said the US will help ensure the safety of Ukraine’s transactions, but he did not clarify the scope of his commitment. He also appeared to dismiss the need for a ceasefire ahead of peace talks.
Contributions: Kim Fjelmgaard, Francesca Chambers, Bert Janssen, Joey Garrison, Zach Anderson, Sarah D. Wire, Swapna Benugopal Lamaswamy, Kathryn Palmer, USA
Kinsey Crowley is a Trump Connect reporter for the USA Today Network. Contact her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and Tiktok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.
