The meeting, held in the wake of the Trump–Putin summit, focused on security guarantees for Kyiv and potential territorial exchanges to end the war in Ukraine.
WASHINGTON—U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and seven European leaders to the White House on Aug. 18 to explore paths to end Russia’s war with Ukraine.
During the meeting, Trump said the United States would help in providing security guarantees to Ukraine after the war to prevent any future aggression. He also said he would call Russian President Vladimir Putin to set up a follow-up meeting with both him and Zelenskyy as soon as possible to discuss the next steps.
The meeting followed Trump’s summit with Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15.
“The Alaska summit reinforced my belief that while difficult, peace is within reach,” Trump told European leaders.
The U.S. president first hosted a bilateral meeting with Zelenskyy at the White House before bringing in the European leaders for a larger meeting. Zelenskyy described the discussion as a “good conversation,” noting that the two leaders addressed sensitive issues, including security guarantees for Ukraine and proposals concerning which countries would control specific territories.
The Ukrainian leader said a further discussion about territorial control will take place in a trilateral meeting involving himself, Trump, and Putin.
The European leaders who joined the larger multilateral meeting included British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Trump told the leaders that a breakthrough occurred at the Alaska summit when Putin agreed to accept security guarantees for Ukraine. He then emphasized the need to work out the specifics of the arrangement. He expressed hope that Europe would shoulder a large portion of the responsibility with the United States playing a supportive role.
“I’m optimistic that collectively, we can reach an agreement that would deter any future aggression against Ukraine,” Trump told the leaders.
“We also need to discuss the possible exchanges of territory taking into consideration the current line of contact,” the U.S. president said.
“Ultimately, this is a decision that can only be made by President Zelenskyy and by the people of Ukraine,” he added.
The leaders also expressed a shared hope for a peace deal in Ukraine.
Rutte said Trump’s willingness to support some form of security guarantee for Ukraine is a “big breakthrough.”
“I think in the past two weeks we’ve probably had more progress in ending this war than we have in the past three and a half years,” Stubb said. “And I think the fact that we’re around this table today is very much symbolic in the sense that it’s team Europe and team United States helping Ukraine.”
Trump earlier remarked on the unprecedented nature of the meeting with so many European leaders convening at the White House with such short planning.
“A big day at the White House,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Aug. 18. “We have never had so many European Leaders here at one time. A great honor for America!!!”
By Emel Akan and Ryan Morgan
