Europeans to back Zelenskiy in Washington as Trump presses Ukraine deal

LONDON/KYIV/WASHINGTON, Aug 18,2025: European leaders will joined Volodymyr Zelenskiy to meet Donald Trump in Washington, seeking to shore up Zelenskiy’s position as the U.S. president presses Ukraine to accept a quick peace deal to end Europe’s deadliest war in 80 years.
Trump is leaning on Zelenskiy to strike an agreement after he met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska and emerged more aligned with Moscow on seeking a peace deal instead of a ceasefire first.
Trump and Zelenskiy will meet on Monday. It is expected that they will have a bilateral meeting prior to the European leaders joining a larger conversation, according to a person briefed on the conversation.
Trump discussed Ukraine in several social media posts on Sunday. In one, he promised “BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA” in a social media post without specifying what this might be. In another, he said Zelenskiy could end the war “almost immediately, if he wants to” and seemed to indicate that reclaiming Crimea and joining NATO are off the table for Ukraine.
In a post on his Truth Social social media, Trump said: “Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!”
Sources briefed on Moscow’s thinking told Reuters the U.S. and Russian leaders have discussed proposals for Russia to relinquish tiny pockets of occupied Ukraine in exchange for Kyiv ceding a swathe of fortified land in the east and freezing the front lines elsewhere.
Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s envoy to international organizations in Vienna, said Russia agreed that any peace agreement on Ukraine must provide security guarantees to Kyiv.