LONDON — President Donald Trump on Sunday teased what he mentioned can be a “massive day” as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a bunch of European leaders ready for a White Home assembly that Trump mentioned can finish Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “nearly instantly.”
Monday’s Washington, D.C., summit follows Trump’s assembly with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. Since that assembly, Trump seems to have dropped his demand for Russia to conform to a right away ceasefire and is now pressuring Kyiv to just accept territorial concessions to safe a peace deal.
On Sunday, Trump explicitly mentioned Ukraine is not going to regain Crimea — occupied by Russia in 2014. The president additionally repeated that Ukraine is not going to be allowed to hitch NATO, although White Home particular envoy Steve Witkoff and Zelenskyy have hinted at various safety ensures involving the U.S.
“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can finish the battle with Russia nearly instantly, if he desires to, or he can proceed to combat,” Trump wrote on social media on Sunday.
The president has beforehand incorrectly framed Ukraine because the initiator of the battle, which started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. That invasion adopted Moscow’s cross-border aggression in 2014, which noticed Russia seize Crimea and elements of the japanese Donbas area.
“Huge day on the White Home tomorrow,” Trump added. “I’ve by no means had so many European leaders at one time. It is my nice honor to host them!!!”
President Donald Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the White Home in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28, 2025.
Ben Curtis/AP
“NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE,” Trump added. “Some issues by no means change!!!”
Trump is predicted to greet Zelenskyy outdoors the West Wing at 1 p.m. ET, based on a schedule printed by the White Home, after which they may maintain a bilateral assembly. The president is scheduled to take images with European leaders at round 2:30 p.m. ET and maintain a multilateral assembly with them at 3 p.m.
Vice President JD Vance can even attend the Trump-Zelenskyy assembly, a supply acquainted with the plans confirmed to ABC Information. Vance was a part of the dramatic Oval Workplace assembly in February throughout which the vp publicly berated Zelenskyy over his alleged ingratitude for U.S. wartime assist.
Zelenskyy mentioned in a publish to social media that he had arrived in Washington on Sunday evening, expressing his gratitude to Trump for internet hosting the deliberate assembly. “All of us share a robust need to finish this battle shortly and reliably,” Zelenskyy wrote.
“And peace should be lasting,” he added, noting Moscow’s 2014 aggression plus the failure of the worldwide group to implement the 1994 Budapest Memorandum — which was additionally signed by Russia — that supplied Ukraine “safety assurances” in change for Kyiv surrendering its Chilly Battle-era nuclear arsenal.
“Ukrainians are combating for his or her land, for his or her independence,” Zelenskyy wrote. “Russia should finish this battle, which it itself began. And I hope that our joint power with America, with our European associates, will drive Russia into an actual peace.”
Friday’s summit in Alaska ended with Russia demanding that Ukraine cede the whole thing of its contested and fortified japanese Donetsk area in change for an finish to the combating, two sources advised ABC Information.
Trump then challenged Kyiv to “make the deal” and lavished reward on Putin. “Look, Russia is a really massive energy, they usually’re not,” Trump advised Fox Information after the assembly. Putin, he added, is a “robust man” and “powerful as hell.”
A number of European leaders will accompany Zelenskyy on the White Home assembly. European leaders have backed Zelenskyy and Ukraine’s positions in the course of the Trump administration’s strain marketing campaign on Kyiv.
These confirmed as attending are European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, NATO Secretary-Common Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb.
Forward of final week’s summit in Alaska, European leaders echoed Zelenskyy’s place {that a} ceasefire should precede peace negotiations, that safety ensures for Kyiv should be put in place and that solely Ukraine could make the ultimate determination on any territorial concessions.
Smoke rises from broken buildings on the web site of the Russian drone strike in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on this handout image launched on Aug. 18, 2025.
State Emergency Service Of Ukrai/through Reuters
On Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron advised reporters that he and his fellow European leaders might be touring to Washington each to assist Zelenskyy and “to defend European pursuits” at a “very critical” second for the continent’s safety.
“If we’re weak at present with Russia, we put together the wars of tomorrow,” Macron mentioned, including that Moscow had “by no means” revered previous “guarantees of non-aggression.”
The character of Western safety ensures for Ukraine might be a key matter for dialogue, Macron mentioned, explaining to journalists a two-pronged method by which Ukraine’s army can be bolstered and a Western “reassurance drive” can be deployed to Ukraine to behave as a deterrent towards renewed Russian assaults.
Any concessions will spark intense debate inside Ukraine. The nation’s structure dictates that any adjustments to the nationwide borders should be authorized by an all-Ukraine referendum.
Kyiv’s ambitions to hitch each NATO and the European Union are additionally enshrined within the structure, that means it might must be amended for Ukraine to just accept exclusion from both bloc.
“Territorial concessions are not possible,” Oleksandr Mrezhko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament and chair of the physique’s overseas affairs committee, advised ABC Information. “Beneath the current circumstances, we want a ceasefire and safety ensures to stop Putin from violating the ceasefire.”
“In my view, Putin’s thought a few ‘peace treaty’ as a substitute of a ceasefire is extraordinarily harmful and unacceptable for each Ukraine and the U.S.,” he added.
“That the U.S. affords to be engaged in safety ensures is nice information for us, however we do not know but what it is going to be in observe,” Merezhko mentioned. “I personally proceed to imagine that the best choice for all — Ukraine, the U.S. and the EU — is NATO membership for Ukraine.”
“Putin is afraid of just one factor — NATO,” Merezhko added. “That is why it is probably the most dependable and efficient safety assure for us.”
In the meantime, each Russia and Ukraine continued long-range assaults in a single day into Monday.
Ukraine’s air drive mentioned Russia launched 140 drones and 4 missiles within the nation, of which 88 drones have been shot down or suppressed. Missile and drone impacts have been reported throughout 25 areas in Donetsk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa and Kyiv areas, the air drive mentioned.
A minimum of seven folks, together with a baby, have been killed when a Russian drone impacted an residence advanced in Kharkiv, native officers mentioned.
Zaporizhzhia Gov. Ivan Fedorov mentioned in a publish to Telegram that no less than three folks have been killed and no less than 23 folks injured by missile strikes within the southern area.
Russia’s Protection Ministry mentioned its forces downed no less than 24 Ukrainian drones in a single day.
ABC Information’ Tom Soufi Burridge, Kelsey Walsh and Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.
