Zelenskyy appears in formal attire
On the day of the meeting, Axios reported, and LB.ua sources in the Ukrainian delegation confirmed, that the White House had asked Ukrainian officials whether President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would wear a suit to his meeting with Donald Trump.
Zelenskyy did wear a suit – a black one, apparently the same he had worn at the Pope’s funeral. The gesture was noted and appreciated.
Brian Glenn, the same reporter who in February had pounced on Volodymyr Zelenskyy with questions and reproaches about his lack of formal attire, this time praised him: “You look great in that suit.” It is evident that Glenn’s remarks – he is the husband of Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, known for her pro-Russian statements – had been prepared by White House PR staff on both occasions.
Donald Trump concurred with the reporter, noting that he himself had made the same remark to Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy thanks Melania Trump
Volodymyr Zelenskyy handed Donald Trump a letter from his wife, addressed to Melania Trump, in which, according to the Ukrainian president, she expressed her gratitude to the First Lady of the United States for writing to Vladimir Putin to request the release of kidnapped Ukrainian children.
It was evident that the US president valued the gesture.
“She loves her son, she loves children. And she hates to see this happening,” he said. “She speaks about it very openly, very proudly and with great sadness, because so many people have died.”
Trump promises security guarantees
Donald Trump stated that the United States would provide security guarantees to Ukraine. This represents an important shift in the position of the American administration: previously, the US president had described the issue as a European responsibility and had avoided giving direct answers to questions about whether the United States would join European countries if they decided to offer guarantees to Ukraine.
“There will be a lot of help when it comes to security,” Donald Trump said, emphasising the need to strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities once the war ends.
Commenting on Europe’s role, he noted: “They are the first line of defence because they are there, they are Europe, but we are also going to help them. We will be involved.”
“We are committed to providing good protection. I think we will succeed,” the US president added.
When asked whether the deployment of American troops on Ukrainian territory was possible, Trump responded that he would answer that question later.
At the same time, he stressed that the United States would no longer provide free assistance “as in Biden’s time”. Instead, Europeans would continue to pay for what he called “the best weapons in the world”. As Trump underlined: “We are not giving anything away. Now we sell weapons… We sell NATO weapons, and NATO does what it needs to do. I don’t know what agreements you have with them, but I know they want you to have weapons, and we have the best weapons in the world, and they pay us.”
He also repeated his claim that during Joseph Biden’s presidency, the United States had provided Ukraine with “weapons, money and everything else worth $350 billion”.
When asked by a journalist what Ukraine needed from the United States and European countries in terms of security guarantees, Volodymyr Zelenskyy replied succinctly: “Everything.”
US priority is lasting peace, not a ceasefire
Speaking about possible formats for ending the war, Donald Trump said that none of the six conflicts he had previously helped to resolve had begun with a ceasefire.
“I didn’t make any ceasefire agreements, and I know it would be nice, but I also understand very well that strategically, one country or another would not want that,” he said, adding: “We want lasting peace, not a few years of calm. We want this to last a long time, and we will do everything we can to make such agreements work. If we achieve peace, everything will work out.”
“We can agree to work on a peace deal while the parties are fighting – they have to fight,” the US president added.
It should be noted that Ukraine and its European partners have consistently insisted on a cessation of hostilities before the start of peace talks. Before his meeting with Putin, Donald Trump himself had previously called for an immediate ceasefire.
Trilateral meeting with Putin considered
The US president also expressed hope of organising a trilateral meeting with the presidents of Russia and Ukraine.
“The war will end when it ends. I can’t tell you, but the war will end, and this gentleman [pointing to Volodymyr Zelenskyy] wants it to end, and Vladimir Putin wants it to end,” he said.
Donald Trump further stated that he intended to call Putin after the summit at the White House, adding that he had spoken with the Russian president “indirectly” – most likely through Witkoff and one of his Russian counterparts – before his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“We will have a phone call immediately after these meetings today, and we may or may not have talks,” the US president said.
Zelenskyy questioned on territorial concessions
Another likely pre-arranged question came from a Fox News journalist, who asked whether the Ukrainian president would consider ceding territory to Russia or would “continue to send his soldiers to their deaths”.
President Zelenskyy responded by saying that Ukrainians are subjected to Russian attacks every day, stressing that Ukrainian children are dying as a result of the bombings. However, he avoided giving a direct answer to the question of any potential territorial concessions.
Later, at a summit attended by the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Finland, as well as the NATO Secretary General and the President of the European Commission, Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated: “All sensitive issues, territorial issues, etc., will be discussed at the leadership level during a trilateral meeting. And President Trump will try to organise such a meeting.”
Following the meeting in the Oval Office, the White House released a photograph of the two presidents standing beside a map of Ukraine, with territories occupied by Russia clearly marked.
Commenting on this, Volodymyr Zelenskyy remarked: “I discussed many details from the battlefield with President Trump. By the way, thank you for the map. It’s a beautiful map, wonderful. I would even take it with me.”
Trump questions Ukraine’s election moratorium
American journalists also asked President Zelenskyy whether elections would be held in Ukraine after the end of the war. He confirmed that they would, explaining: “We will work in the Verkhovna Rada, because we cannot hold elections during martial law. But there must be complete peace – in the sky, on land, at sea – so that people can exercise their will.”
The moratorium on elections during wartime also drew Donald Trump’s attention. “So you’re saying that elections cannot be held during wartime? So let me say that in three and a half years (when the next presidential election is due to take place in the US – ed.), if we suddenly find ourselves at war with someone, there will be no more elections?” the US president asked.