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The two presidents’ comments at the top of the meeting laid out what each is hoping to accomplish in today’s talks.
For Mr. Trump, he said he is pushing for consensus among the U.S., Ukraine and Europe regarding what an eventual peace deal to end the war in Ukraine might look like. He said his end goal is to make enough progress to be able to schedule a follow-up meeting with Zelenskyy and Putin where a final agreement could be reached.
When it came to specifics, including the crucial issue of security guarantees for Ukraine to prevent another Russian invasion in the future, the president largely avoided taking a definitive position, saying the parties at the White House would work to hash out the details. He acknowledged that the U.S. would “be involved” to some degree in ensuring Ukraine’s security, along with Europe.
“We’re going to work with everybody, and we’re going to make sure that if there’s peace, the peace is going to stay long term. This is very long term. We’re not talking about a two year peace and then we end up in this mess again,” Mr. Trump said.
Zelenskyy said he is pushing for “everything” he can get from the U.S. in terms of a security arrangement, and said a “strong Ukrainian army” is crucial for ensuring the country’s future. “It’s a lot about weapons and then people and training and intelligence,” he said, as well as “the big countries” like the U.S. and “a lot of our friends.”
Mr. Trump did not take a position on whether Ukraine would have to cede territory to Russia, an idea that Zelenskyy has rejected in the past.
“We’re going to have a lasting peace,” Mr. Trump said in response to a question about territories.