Chicago – August 19, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump promised to help guarantee Ukraine’s security in any peace agreement to end Russia’s ongoing war. This statement was made during a special meeting at the White House on Monday, where Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and several European leaders. This came after Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
Trump told reporters that Europe would play a key role in defending Ukraine but that the U.S. would offer significant support. Zelenskiy praised this promise, calling it “a major step forward.” He mentioned that the security guarantees would be finalized in the next week to ten days, and Ukraine also expressed interest in purchasing around $90 billion worth of U.S. weapons.
This meeting was a significant change from a tense encounter between Trump and Zelenskiy in February, where both Trump and Vice President JD Vance had openly criticized Ukraine. However, a peace deal is still not in sight, as Russia’s Foreign Ministry ruled out sending NATO troops to help enforce a potential agreement, complicating Trump’s offer.
Both Trump and Zelenskiy are hopeful that this meeting will eventually lead to talks with Putin. Trump later shared on social media that he had called Putin and began organizing a meeting between him and Zelenskiy.
A trilateral summit involving all three leaders could take place soon, possibly in Hungary, as the U.S. official confirmed that the meeting would happen within two weeks, according to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
