As “superficial”, some analysts characterize Donald Trump’s meeting with Volodimir Zelenski and European leaders at the White House on Monday night (18.08.2025). Although the meeting was completed in a good climate, and the next steps aimed at Peace in Ukraine were agreed, none of the two positions were back in terms of sanctions and land exchange.
After completing the talks, Donald Trump informed via Truth Social that a bilateral meeting would be held between Vladimir Putin and Volodimir Zelenski next time and shortly after a tripartite where he would participate.
He has not yet taken the Kremlin about what was said Monday night at the White House.
See everything that happened in the White House among the leaders on Newsit.gr.
Concerning the key points of the talks between Donald Trump, Volodimir Zeleski, Ursula von der Laien, Marke Rutte, Georgia Meloni, Kir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron, Alexander Stubb and Friedrich Merz.
Security guarantees
In a very important step towards an agreement, Donald Trump promised that the US would participate in providing security guarantees for Ukraine.
The US leader said there would be some form of security guarantees for Ukraine, but did not reveal whether this would include US troops.
The US president said Vladimir Putin “agreed that Russia would accept security guarantees for Ukraine”.
“I think the European nations will bear much of the weight. We will help them and make it very safe. “
The Financial Times, however With European funds, in return for security guarantees.
His comments were welcomed by European leaders, with Ursula von der Laien, President of the European Commission, stating that it was “good to hear” that nations were working on “Article 5 type security guarantees”.
Article 5 of NATO stipulates that an attack on a member of a member is considered an attack on all of them.
“When we talk about security guarantees, we are talking about the whole security of the European continent,” said French President Emmanuel Macron.
He added that a guarantee that would like to arise from any agreements is that Ukraine should be able to have a “credible” army for “the years and decades to come”.
The likelihood of Ukraine will eventually enter NATO is considered a thing of the past.
No ceasefire of fire
Donald Trump said there is no need for a truce in Ukraine because a peace deal could be reached while Ukraine and Russia are in war.
“I don’t think a ceasefire needs a ceasefire. You know, if you look at the 6 agreements I closed this year, they were all in war, I didn’t get any ceasefire, “he said.
“I know it may be good to exist, but I can also understand, strategically, because one or the other would not want it. You have a truce and rebuild, rebuild and rebuild, and they may not want it. “
He said that he liked the “concept of truce” because people would stop killing, but “we can reach an agreement where we will work for a peace agreement while they are fighting.”
It is recalled that until before his meeting with Volodimir Zelenski in Alaska, Donald Trump said he would leave this session happy, only if a ceasefire agreement was reached.
German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz said that “we would all like to see a truce.”
“I can’t imagine that the next meeting will take place without a ceasefire, so let’s work on it and try to put pressure on Russia,” he said.
Donald Trump later reacted, saying he didn’t need a truce to end other wars, but would welcome it if needed.
Trump – Putin – Zelenski meeting
The US president said that “if all goes well”, there will be a tripartite meeting between himself, Vladimir Putin and Volodimir Zelenski.
The latter said he was ready for such a meeting and Donald Trump confirmed that Vladimir Putin was in the same position.
Emmanuel Macron said that while a tripartite meeting is important, a “four -day” summit should also be held.
It was not clear whether the French president meant a meeting in which France would attend or if he meant that NATO, the EU or the “coalition of the willing”.
Donald Trump said he would call Vladimir Putin “immediately after” meetings at the White House, but eventually interrupted the conversation with European leaders to call his Russian counterpart in the middle of the meeting, according to an EU diplomat.
‘Dangerous’ territory exchanges
“We also need to discuss possible territorial exchanges,” the US president said in view of the multilateral talks.
He said that such exchanges should take “the current contact line”.
“This means the war zone, the war lines that are now, quite obvious, very sad, in fact, to look at them and the negotiating positions.”
This comes after the information published by Vladimir Putin, who is allegedly requested to take control of the Eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine during the Alaska summit with Donald Trump as a prerequisite for the end.
In return, Russia would grant other Ukrainian territories held by its troops.
Russian troops are currently holding large sections of 2 areas and, in September 2022, Moscow announced that the annexation officially, along with the Hersona and Zaporizia areas, in a move that was rejected and convicted as illegal by the West.
Volodimir Zelenski had previously ruled out the possibility of any region in Moscow.