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Trump meets Zelensky, European leaders on Ukraine crisis; attire and map details draw attention

Global Times

By Liu Xin Published: Aug 19, 2025 11:34 AM

US President Donald Trump said he's begun arranging a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin after a summit with Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Monday, according to multiple media reports.

Trump wrote on social media on Monday evening that he'd discussed the matter with Putin during a phone call amid meetings with European leaders at the White House. "At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelensky," Trump wrote. "After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself. Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years."

On Monday, Trump firstly hosted Zelensky and then seven European leaders at the White House on Monday, with a focus on resolving the Ukrainian crisis.

Zelensky arrived for his meeting with Trump in the Oval Office wearing an all-black suit, but no tie - months after he was derided for his lack of formal dress during his previous visit to the White House. His fashion choice was noted by members of the media who had criticized him in February, according to a report from the Independent.

"First of all, president Zelensky, you look fabulous in that suit. You look good," said MAGA reporter Brian Glenn, who last time had asked the Ukrainian leader "Do you even own a suit?" "That's the one that attacked you," Trump said to Zelensky, to which he replied with a knowing smile: "I remember." The Ukrainian president then noted to Glenn: "You are in the same suit. I changed, you have not," drawing laughter from the room, as well as Trump, said the report.

The Independent also noted that the "high-stakes meeting comes months" after the US President welcomed Zelensky into the West Wing in February, and made jabs about his customary military-style attire, joking telling the press "he's all dressed up today." And it also noted that Trump's irritation during Zelensky's last visit, which descended into a shouting match, was about more than just his fashion choices." Compared with the last meeting, the Monday meeting seemingly had a "far more positive outcome."

According to multiple media reports, in brief opening comments Monday, Zelensky said "thank you" or "thanks" about 10 times, expressing gratitude that Trump had invited him, said The Wall Street Journal. While The Independent reported that Zelensky later told reporters that the bilateral with Trump had gone well "I think that we had a very good conversation with President Trump, very good," he said. "And it really was the best one, or, sorry, maybe the best one will be in the future."

Another detail was later unveiled by some media that a large map of Ukraine with the occupied territories marked was on display in the Oval Office behind the Resolute Desk, opposite which the presidents were seated, according to BBC.

While answering reporters' questions together with Zelensky, Trump said he believes Russian President Putin wants the Russia-Ukraine war to end, and he will work with Ukraine and all parties to make sure peace stays, according to a Xinhua report.

Trump said progress is being made in resolving the war in Ukraine and there will be security guarantees that Ukraine asks for.

Zelensky said he supports the idea of finishing the war in a diplomatic way and he is ready for a trilateral meeting.

At Monday meeting between Trump and Zelensky, both sides struck a softer tone, with Zelensky under pressure from US-Russia coordination and battlefield realities, hinting at possible compromise, said Sun Xiuwen, an associate professor at the Institute for Central Asian Studies at Lanzhou University.

Trump may also take a pragmatic line—pushing Europe to take the lead on security guarantees and backing Ukraine's production of US weapons, said the expert.

Sun noted that a US-Russia-Ukraine summit may be imminent. But key disputes still remain, including on that Ukraine and Europe demand a ceasefire before peace talks, while Washington and Moscow want direct negotiations; Russia accepts NATO-style security guarantees but rejects Ukrainian membership. And the hardest issue is territorial sovereignty, as Moscow insists on holding its current occupied areas, which may be a devastating prospect for Zelensky's government, said Sun.

Also on Monday, European leaders - NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron - arrived at the White House and took part in a multilateral meeting with Trump and Zelensky on Monday afternoon.

A Reuters report said that European leaders, who "rushed to Washington" to back up Zelensky, urged Trump to insist that Putin agree to a ceasefire in the 3-1/2-year-old war before any talks can advance.

Trump previously backed that proposal but reversed course after meeting with Putin on Friday, instead adopting Moscow's position that any peace agreement be comprehensive. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he liked the concept of a ceasefire but the two sides could work on a peace deal while the fighting continued.

Trump interrupted his talks with the European leaders to call Putin. In a photo posted by The White House on X, Trump speaks on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. A translator as well as Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were also seen in the photo, according to CNN.

In his post on Truth Social, Trump said that during the meeting with the European leaders, they "discussed Security Guarantees for Ukraine, which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America. Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine."

however, a BBC report said that "despite optimistic words by Trump and some more lukewarm assessments from his European partners, by Monday evening there were no concrete commitments to security guarantees or steps towards a peace deal."

European leaders rushed to Washington to avoid being sidelined but arrived with little leverage. Trump focused on pushing Ukraine toward a ceasefire, yet offered nothing new to alter the dynamics. Ukraine resents the U.S. terms, and Europe resists hasty concessions，Cui Heng, a scholar from the Shanghai-based China National Institute for SCO International Exchange and Judicial Cooperation, told the Global Times.

Whether in trilateral or four-party talks, a breakthrough looks unlikely. Trump's quick-fix approach to a complex war has already failed, and without real new factors, the stalemate will persist, said Cui.

Sun noted that the push for a US-Russia-Ukraine trilateral summit marks a diplomatic opening, but core disputes over territory, security guarantees, and the sequencing of a ceasefire remain unresolved. Europe shows unity yet has little sway over the US-Russia lead, while Trump's "peace through war" approach may risk deepening Ukraine's battlefield disadvantage. Any delay or breakdown in the talks could leave Kiev facing an even harsher summer, said the expert.