"We are open to holding elections in our country in safe conditions," Volodymyr Zelensky said during a meeting with Donald Trump at the White House. Due to Russian aggression, the parliamentary and presidential elections in Ukraine have been suspended. They were scheduled to be held in October 2023 and March 2024.

- We are open to holding elections in our country in safe conditions (...) We have to work in parliament, because during war  elections cannot be held - said Volodymyr Zelensky.

"We need a ceasefire everywhere, on the battlefield, in the air, and at sea, to allow people to hold democratic, open, and legal elections," the Ukrainian president added. Currently, martial law is in effect in Ukraine, which prevents elections from being held.

Zelensky then responded to a journalist's question regarding  security guarantees that Ukraine should receive.

- We need a strong army, personnel, equipment, training missions, intelligence information, it depends on powerful countries, including the US - said the leader.

Earlier, Zelensky handed Trump a letter from his wife addressed to Melania Trump."It's not for you," the Ukrainian president joked.

This is a reference to a letter from Trump's wife, which the American president delivered to Vladimir Putin. In it, Melania raised the issue of children kidnapped during the war in Ukraine.

As Donald Trump announced during his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, the leader will discuss the issue of security guarantees similar to those included in Article 5 of the NATO Treaty.

Trump also suggested support for potential European forces to guarantee peace in Ukraine. Asked whether he was considering sending American troops to Ukraine after the fighting subsided, Trump replied,"We might tell you about that later."

"Today, we're meeting with seven great people, great countries, and we'll be talking about it. They'll all be involved, but they'll have a lot of help when it comes to security," he emphasized. Trump added that the Europeans are the first line of defense, but declared that the U.S. will help them.

Asked later if he intended to offer Ukraine NATO-like protection, Trump replied that he didn't know if he would put it that way, but that European leaders wanted to offer Ukraine security, and America would help them. He also promised to provide Ukraine with good protection.