Following the Alaska summit between US President Donald Trump and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, efforts to end the war in Ukraine are continuing imminently. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will travel to Washington on Monday for talks with Trump. Zelenskyy supports Trump's proposal for a three-way meeting with Putin. Trump, meanwhile, rules out an immediate ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Putin expressed satisfaction with the meeting.
"The conversation was very open, rich in content, and, in my opinion, brings us closer to the desired solutions," Putin said before a meeting with representatives of the Russian leadership in the Kremlin, where he planned to elaborate on the details of the summit behind closed doors."We haven't held direct negotiations of this kind at this level for a long time," he added, according to the TASS news agency.
Russia respects the US government's position on the need for a rapid end to hostilities in Ukraine, Putin said."Well, we would also welcome this and would like to resolve all issues by peaceful means," the Kremlin chief said.
His troops have been waging a brutal war of aggression against Ukraine since February 2022, having so far brought nearly a fifth of the neighboring country under their control. The summit in Anchorage produced no tangible results toward a quick peace solution. Russia has still not visibly backed down from its maximum demands.
Trump, in turn, directly advocated for a"peace agreement." "It has been determined by all that the best way to end the terrible war between Russia and Ukraine is to directly reach a peace agreement that ends the war, not just a ceasefire agreement, which is often broken," Trump declared on Saturday on his online service Truth Social. The day before, he met with Putin in Alaska for a summit.
Kyiv: First ceasefire, then everything else
Ukraine rejects Trump's proposal to conduct peace talks without a prior ceasefire."Our view is: first a ceasefire, and then everything else," said Serhiy Leshchenko, a presidential adviser, on Ukrainian news television on Saturday. If hostilities continue during the talks, there are"great risks of blackmailing Ukraine," he said.
Zelensky in Washington on Monday
Zelensky will travel to Washington on Monday, a fact Trump also confirmed."I will discuss all the details regarding ending the killings and ending the war with President Trump in Washington on Monday," Zelensky wrote on Telegram on Saturday, referring to Russia's war of aggression against his country. He supported Trump's proposal for a three-way meeting with Putin.
"Ukraine emphasizes that key issues can be discussed at the level of heads of state, and a tripartite format is appropriate for this," he added. Zelenskyy advocated for the inclusion of European representatives, especially on the issue of security guarantees for his country.
According to reports, Zelensky and Trump had previously spoken by phone for about an hour. European heads of state and government later joined the conversation, which lasted more than an hour and a half. Trump informed Zelensky and the Europeans about the"main points of discussion" with Putin.
Ukrainian circles: US offers Kyiv NATO-like assistance
According to Ukrainian sources, Ukraine received a US offer for NATO-like security guarantees – without Ukraine joining the military alliance."As one of the security guarantees for Ukraine, the American side proposed a kind of Article Five guarantee outside of NATO," Ukrainian diplomatic sources told AFP on Saturday. Article Five of the NATO treaty obligates alliance members to provide mutual assistance in the event of an attack. Diplomatic sources in Kyiv said the US offer was"allegedly coordinated with Putin."
A second source with knowledge of the events confirmed that the video call was about possible guarantees of assistance."But no one knows in detail how that would work—or why Putin would agree to it when he is categorically opposed to NATO and, apparently, any effective guarantee of Ukraine's sovereignty," the source added.
"Constructive" discussions without details
Putin and Trump spoke of constructive talks after the summit in Alaska on Friday (local time), but they did not provide any details."We haven't reached the goal yet," Trump told reporters after the meeting at an air base in Anchorage."But the chances are very good that we will reach it." Putin said the summit in Alaska could hopefully be a starting point for resolving the Ukraine conflict and restoring relations between the US and Russia. He expected Ukraine and the Europeans to accept the outcome of the meeting.
Meanwhile, according to Russian sources, a possible three-way summit between the presidents of Russia, the United States, and Ukraine was not discussed at the Alaska summit. The state news agency Tass reported this, citing Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov. He also said he did not yet know when Putin and Trump would meet again after their meeting in Alaska. Trump told Fox News after his meeting with Putin that Zelensky and Putin wanted to arrange a joint meeting and that he would attend if both desired.
Further consultations between EU member states
According to journalists traveling with him, Trump had the lengthy phone call with Zelensky on his return flight from Alaska to Washington. He then spoke with NATO allies, the journalists reported, citing a Trump press secretary.
According to the EU Commission, those taking part in the talks with Trump and Zelensky were: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Polish President Karol Nawrocki and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte - as well as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
Further consultations between European heads of government followed. The EU ambassadors of the member states are scheduled to meet for an extraordinary meeting this Saturday to update themselves on the Alaska summit. The"coalition of the willing" will then meet via video conference on Sunday, according to the Élysée Palace in Paris. Macron will chair the meeting together with Merz and Starmer. It was not initially announced in Paris who else would be participating in the talks.
Europeans emphasize solidarity with Ukraine
Following the Alaska summit between the US and Russia, the Europeans emphasized their continued support for Ukraine."Ukraine can count on our unwavering solidarity," they said in a joint statement released on Saturday. They welcomed Trump's efforts to work toward peace in Ukraine and were also ready to support a trilateral meeting between the US, Ukraine, and Russia.
However, the Europeans reiterate their core demands:"We are aware that Ukraine needs ironclad security guarantees to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity," they say. They welcome the fact that Trump is also willing to do so.
No restrictions should be placed on Ukraine's armed forces or their cooperation with third countries, demand the Europeans, who had previously been informed by Trump about his conversation with the Russian president."Russia cannot veto Ukraine's path to the EU and NATO," they emphasize. It is also right that Trump insists that there will be no agreement"until there is a deal."
It is up to Ukraine to make decisions about its territory. International borders must not be altered by force. Until the violence ends, more will be done to strengthen Ukraine and maintain pressure on Russia."We will further intensify sanctions and broader economic measures to exert pressure on Russia's war economy until a just and lasting peace is achieved," the Europeans announced. The declaration was signed by Merz, Macron, Meloni, Starmer, Stubb, EU Commission President von der Leyen, and EU Council President Costa.
Praise and criticism
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban drew a positive conclusion from the meeting between Putin and Trump in Alaska."The world is a safer place today than it was yesterday," Orban wrote on Facebook."For years, we watched as the two largest nuclear powers dissolved the framework of their cooperation and sent messages to each other," he said. That is now over.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico also welcomed the summit's results. The coming days will show whether the major European Union states support it, Fico explained on his Facebook page. In this context, he spoke of a so far"unsuccessful European strategy to weaken Russia through this conflict with all kinds of, literally unbelievable, financial, political, or military aid to Kyiv."
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, on the other hand, emphasized the uncompromising approach to Russia."Europe's security is not up for negotiation," the EU foreign policy chief wrote on Platform X. The real cause of the Ukraine war was Russia's imperialist foreign policy,"not an imaginary imbalance in the European security architecture."
Trump's determination to reach a peace agreement is crucial: "The harsh reality, however, is that Russia has no intention of ending this war anytime soon," Kallas added. While the delegations were meeting, Russia launched new attacks on Ukraine."Putin continues to drag out the negotiations and hopes to get away with it."
