Trump to meet with Zelenskyy, European leaders after Putin summit

Trump further ratcheted up his efforts to end the war in Ukraine by outlining potential Russian sticking points ahead of today’s high-stakes meeting with Zelenskyy and European leaders.

“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,” Trump wrote last night on Truth Social.

Aiming to secure a peace agreement to end the war, Trump said in the post that Ukraine will likely have to give up “Obama given Crimea,” to Russia, which seized control of the peninsula in 2014. Zelenskyy had pledged to return Crimea to Ukrainian control and has called the prospect of ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia a red line in negotiations.

Zelenskyy maintained that posture as he arrived in Washington, writing in a Twitter post Sunday night that he is confident Ukrainian forces will defend “their land.”

“Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022. Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their independence,” Zelenskyy wrote.