Trump stops meeting of world's most powerful to call one man

US President Donald Trump says the White House is now working on arranging a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after a "very good meeting" with the latter and major European leaders this morning.

"During the meeting we discussed Security Guarantees for Ukraine, which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine."

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Sources said Trump paused his meeting with European leaders to call Putin, through Trump himself said the call was placed "at the conclusion of the meetings".

Trump said arrangements had begun for a meeting "at a location to be determined" between Putin and Zelenskyy.

"After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself," he said.

"Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, are coordinating with Russia and Ukraine. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

The post came as Trump met with Zelenskyy and European leaders French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, in a leaders-only meeting in the Oval Office.

US would back European security guarantees in Ukraine

Trump earlier stopped short of committing US troops to the effort, saying instead that there would be a "NATO-like" security presence but that all those details would be hashed out in their afternoon meeting with EU leaders.

"They want to give protection and they feel very strongly about it and we'll help them out with that," Trump said on Monday afternoon (early Tuesday AEST),

"I think it's very important to get the deal done."

Trump's engagement with Zelenskyy had a strikingly different feel to their last Oval Office meeting in February.

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It was a disastrous moment that led to Trump abruptly ending talks with the Ukrainian delegation, and temporarily pausing some aid for Kyiv, after he and Vice President JD Vance complained that Zelenskyy had shown insufficient gratitude for US military assistance.

Zelenskyy at the start of the meeting presented a letter from his wife, Olena Zelenska, for Trump's wife, Melania.

The US first lady over the weekend sent a letter to Putin urging him to consider the children impacted by the conflict and bring an end to the brutal war.

Trump at one point needled Zelenskyy over Ukraine delaying elections. They had been scheduled for last year but were delayed because of the ongoing Russian invasion. Ukrainian law does not allow presidential elections to be held when martial law is in effect.

Trump joked that a similar circumstance wouldn't play well in the US.

"So let me just say three and a half years from now — so you mean, if we happen to be in a war with somebody, no more elections, oh, I wonder what the fake news would say," Trump said.

Trump praises Zelensky's black suit after previous dust-up over his attire

Amid intense discussions of war and peace, a lighthearted moment occurred just now in the Oval Office as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's choice of a black suit was noted by a reporter and President Donald Trump.

"You look fabulous in that suit," said the reporter, Brian Glenn of Real America's Voice, who questioned Zelensky's choice of outfit during his visit to the White House in February.

"I said the same thing," Trump exclaimed.

"You're in the same suit," Zelenksy told Glenn. "I changed, you have not."

Zelensky's attire was discussed between US and Ukrainian officials ahead of Monday's talks between the Ukrainian leader and Trump, a European official said, with the understanding that Zelensky should not arrive wearing his usual green military sweatshirt.

Trump was displeased when Zelensky arrived at the White House in February wearing his military uniform, quipping that he'd gotten "all dressed up."

Trump hints at tri-lateral talks

The hastily assembled meeting comes after Trump met on Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin and has said that the onus is now on Zelenskyy to agree to concessions that he said could end the war.

"If everything works out today, we'll have a trilat," Trump said, referring to possible three-way talks among Zelenskyy, Putin and Trump. 

"We're going to work with Russia, we're going to work with Ukraine."

Trump also said he plans to talk to Putin after his meetings with Zelenskyy and European leaders.

Zelenskyy also expressed openness to trilateral talks.

"We are ready for trilateral as president said," Zelenskyy said at the start of his meeting with Trump.

"It's a good signal about trilateral. I think this is very good."

Trump was holding one-on-one talks with Zelenskyy before the two were scheduled to meet with European leaders, who were left out of Trump's summit with Putin. 

They want to safeguard Ukraine and the continent from any widening aggression from Moscow. Many arrived at the White House with the explicit goal of protecting Ukraine's interests — a rare show of diplomatic force.

Trump makes bizarre claim before meeting

Hours before the high-stakes meeting, Trump claimed Zelenskyy could end Russia's illegal invasion of his country "almost immediately".

In a post on Truth Social on Sunday night (Monday AEST), the US president appeared to put the onus for reaching a ceasefire or peace deal on Zelenskyy rather than Russian counterpart Putin.

"President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight," Trump said.

"Remember how it started."

The unprovoked war was launched by Russia more than three years ago, and has since gone on to claim hundreds of thousands of lives.

A study in June found Moscow's forces were closing in on 1 million military casualties – including about 250,000 deaths – while the figure for Ukraine was sitting at almost 400,000, with 60,000-100,000 deaths.

Tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians have also been injured and killed in the conflict.

In his post, Trump suggested Zelenskyy would have to cede the Crimean peninsula – which is part of Ukraine's internationally recognised borders but has been controlled by Russia since it was seized in 2014 – as part of any peace deal.

He also ruled out NATO membership for Ukraine, something Zelenskyy has long sought.

"No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE," Trump wrote.

"Some things never change!!!"

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Trump's comments came as Zelenskyy prepared for his second White House meeting with Trump (early Tuesday AEST).

Zelenskyy appeared to respond with his own post, saying, "We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably".

He said that "peace must be lasting", not as it was after Russia seized Crimea and part of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine eight years ago, and "Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack".

"We understand that we shouldn't expect Putin to voluntarily abandon aggression and new attempts at conquest," Zelenskyy said in an X posting as European leaders arrived at the White House.

"That is why pressure must work, and it must be joint pressure – from the United States and Europe, and from everyone in the world who respects the right to life and the international order."

Unlike his first trip to Washington this year, when he was infamously and very publicly ambushed by Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office, he'll be joined by an ensemble of prominent European leaders.

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British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as their counterparts from Italy, Finland, NATO and the European Union, will all accompany Zelenskyy.

The meetings are also a test of America's relationship with its closest allies after the EU and UK accepted Trump's tariff hikes partly because they wanted his support on Ukraine.

On the table for discussion are possible NATO-like security guarantees that Ukraine would need for any peace with Russia to be durable.

Putin opposes Ukraine joining NATO outright, yet Trump's team claims the Russian leader is open to allies agreeing to defend Ukraine if it comes under attack.

"Clearly there are no easy solutions when talking about ending a war and building peace," Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told reporters in Washington ahead of the meeting.

"We have to explore all possible solutions to guarantee peace, to guarantee justice, and to guarantee security for our countries."

The European leaders are aiming to keep the focus during the White House talks on finding a sustainable peace and believe forging a temporary ceasefire is not off the table, according to a European official.

At the start of the meeting with European leaders, the German and French leaders praised Trump for opening a path to peace, but they urged the US president to push Russia for a ceasefire.

"I would like to see a ceasefire from the next meeting, which should be a trilateral meeting," Merz said.

European leaders are still looking for a concrete details about what US involvement would be toward building a security guarantee for Ukraine.

Still, Rutte, the NATO Secretary-General, called Trump's commitment to security guarantees "a big step, a breakthrough."

Zelenskyy outlined what he said his country needed to feel secure, which included a "strong Ukrainian army" through weapons sales and training. The second part, he said, would depend on the outcome of Monday's talks and what EU countries, NATO and the US would be able to guarantee to the war-torn country.

Trump briefed Zelenskyy and European allies shortly after the Putin meeting. Details from the discussions emerged in a scattershot way that seemed to rankle the US president, who had chosen not to outline any terms when appearing afterward with Putin.

'A very big move'

European officials confirmed that Trump told them Putin is still seeking control of the entire Donbas region, even though Ukraine controls a meaningful share of it.

Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said the US and its allies could offer Ukraine a NATO-like commitment to defend the country if it came under attack as the possible security guarantee, with details to be worked out.

Zelenskyy came into the talks looking to prevent a scenario in which he gets blamed for blocking peace talks by rejecting Putin's maximalist demand on the Donbas.

It is a demand Zelenskyy has said many times he will never accept because it is unconstitutional and could create a launching pad for future Russian attacks.

Meeting follows Putin summit

The post comes just two days after the much-anticipated meeting between Trump and Putin that ended without a ceasefire plan, and with the Russian dictator having appeared to give up very little – if anything at all – in return for his red-carpet treatment on US soil.

Trump has repeatedly defended the summit, while special envoy Steve Witkoff said Putin did make a crucial concession during the talks.

"We were able to win the following concession: that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO," he told CNN, adding it was "game-changing".

It's "the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that", Witkoff said.

'We stand with Ukraine': Albanese

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, meanwhile, once again indicated an openness to sending troops to be part of any potential United Nations peacekeeping force in the future, saying he would consider any request.

However, he said there was a long way to go before those discussions could take place. 

"We know that Mr Putin has designs on not just Ukraine," Albanese told Sky News.

"The concern is certainly there, and there is certainly a lack of trust between Mr Putin and European and other leaders of democracies.

"We stand with Ukraine, we want to see peace in the region. Ukraine must, of course, not have a solution imposed on it. They need to be a part of those negotiations."

- Reported with Associated Press

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