On August 18, US President Donald Trump held an important meeting at the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Along with Zelensky, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and a number of European leaders arrived in Washington: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, French President Emmanuel Macron, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Trump stated that it was “a great day” for the White House and “a great honor for America” to host so many European leaders at once. The meeting was reported by Baltimore Chronicle.
These discussions come after the meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska. Trump emphasized that the best way to end the war is to sign a peace agreement, not just ceasefire. “If everything goes well” during the meeting with Zelensky in Washington, Trump stated that negotiations could also be planned with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, President Zelensky stressed that achieving a ceasefire should be the first priority, and only after that, other issues should be discussed. Zelensky coordinated his position with allies ahead of the meeting during the Coalition of the Willing summit.
Earlier we wrote about why is Trump meeting Zelensky without European leaders first.
