Just hours after a summit in Alaska ended without any agreement to halt the fighting, Donald Trump shifted his stance, declaring that the next step should be a full peace agreement rather than a ceasefire, since such truces, in his words, often do not hold. The change lands in a long war where Moscow has always resisted temporary pauses, and where Ukraine and its European partners have pressed for a halt before talks. Ukraine's president is now due at the White House, and the question hanging over the moment is whether a shift in emphasis becomes a real path toward peace or simply lets the fig
Trump Pivots to Seeking a Full Peace Deal Over Ceasefire as Zelenskyy Prepares for Washington Talks
Ukrainian and Russian forces continue fighting along a 1,000-kilometre front line, with Russian troops accelerating territorial gains and Moscow launching new attacks during the talks.
"No deal until there's a deal" — and no halt to the fighting
Mark
Why does the switch from ceasefire to peace deal matter so much?
Mimi
Because it changes the order. A ceasefire stops fighting first and negotiates later. A peace-deal-first approach means talks happen while the war goes on, which is what Putin has wanted.
Luke
Careful, though. Gould-Davies says Trump seems to be shifting toward Putin. That's an analyst's reading, not a confirmed change in terms.
Mark
Did the Europeans agree with Trump?
Mimi
Their statement welcomed his efforts but never said a peace deal beats a ceasefire. That silence is notable.
Luke
Notable, but it's silence. We can't say they disagree, only that they didn't endorse it.
Mark
What does Zelenskyy want from Monday?
Mimi
European involvement at every stage, and American participation in security guarantees. He also wants stronger sanctions if no trilateral meeting happens.
Luke
He cited positive signals from Washington but gave no specifics. What the US would actually commit to is unknown.
Mark
And the trilateral meeting?
Mimi
Zelenskyy and the Europeans support it, but Ushakov says it hasn't been touched upon yet.
Luke
So it's a proposal, not a plan. And Melvin's view that Putin got 'mission accomplished' is one expert's judgment, not a fact about Putin's intentions.
Il Polso
- Trump abandons his ceasefire demand hours after Alaska ends with no deal, siding with Putin's long-held rejection of temporary truces.
- European leaders welcome US efforts but refuse to say whether they prefer a peace deal to a ceasefire, exposing a split in the coalition.
- Zelenskyy races to Washington for his first US visit since the Oval Office clash, insisting Europe must share responsibility for security guarantees.
- Russian troops push forward along a 1,000-kilometre front and launch fresh strikes even as the talks proceed, while Moscow dismisses any trilateral meeting as not yet discussed.
Just hours after a summit in Alaska ended without any agreement to halt the fighting, Donald Trump shifted his stance, declaring that the next step should be a full peace agreement rather than a ceasefire, since such truces, in his words, often do not hold. The change lands in a long war where Moscow has always resisted temporary pauses, and where Ukraine and its European partners have pressed for a halt before talks. Ukraine's president is now due at the White House, and the question hanging over the moment is whether a shift in emphasis becomes a real path toward peace or simply lets the fighting continue while diplomacy grinds on.
On Saturday morning, a few hours after the Alaska summit with Vladimir Putin ended with no agreement to stop the fighting, Donald Trump changed the American position. The next step, he wrote, was a full peace agreement, not a ceasefire, because ceasefires often do not hold up. The shift matters because Putin has long refused temporary truces, wanting a lasting settlement on Russia's terms. Trump and Ukraine's European allies had until now pushed for a ceasefire first. Some analysts read the move as Trump drifting toward Putin's approach, one that would let Moscow keep fighting while it negotiates.
Zelenskyy, not invited to Alaska, held a long call with Trump and then joined European leaders on a call lasting more than ninety minutes in total. The two will meet Monday at the White House, Zelenskyy's first US visit since the February clash in the Oval Office. European leaders welcomed Trump's efforts but stopped short of endorsing a peace deal over a ceasefire. They insisted Ukraine must have ironclad security guarantees and that borders must not be changed by force. Zelenskyy insists Europe must be involved at every stage, and a coalition of willing nations will hold a video call Sunday.
On the ground, the war goes on along a 1,000-kilometre front, where Russia has recently gained the most ground since the early months of the invasion. Moscow launched new attacks even as the delegations met. Russian officials called the summit a symbolic end to Putin's isolation, while Zelenskyy urged tougher sanctions if a trilateral meeting fails to materialise. Whether Monday's meeting gives that prospect any footing is the question everyone is now watching.
On Saturday morning, a few hours after the Alaska summit with Vladimir Putin ended without any agreement to stop the fighting, Donald Trump posted a message that changed the American position. The next step in ending the war, he wrote, was a full peace agreement and not a ceasefire, because ceasefires "often times do not hold up." He said this had been determined by all after calls with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders.
The reversal matters because Putin has said for a long time that Moscow has no interest in a temporary truce. He wants a long-term settlement that accounts for the Kremlin's interests. Until then, Trump and Ukraine's European allies had been calling for a ceasefire before any negotiations. Nigel Gould-Davies, a senior fellow at the International Institute of Strategic Studies in London, read the post as Trump's thinking "shifting towards Putin," an approach that would let Moscow keep fighting while it negotiates.
Zelenskyy, who was not invited to Alaska, said he had a "long and substantive" conversation with Trump early Saturday. He spoke with Trump one-on-one and then joined a call with European leaders. Together the conversations ran more than 90 minutes. The two men will meet Monday at the White House to "discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war." It will be Zelenskyy's first US visit since the Feb. 28 Oval Office meeting, when Trump publicly berated him for being "disrespectful." Trump confirmed the meeting and said that if all works out, a meeting with Putin would be scheduled next.
The European statement was more careful. Leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Finland, Poland and the European Union welcomed Trump's efforts to stop the killing and achieve "just and lasting peace," but did not say whether they preferred a peace deal to a ceasefire. They said they were ready to work toward a trilateral summit with European support. They also said Ukraine must have "ironclad security guarantees," welcomed US readiness to provide them, and insisted that decisions on Ukraine's territory are Ukraine's to make and that borders must not be changed by force.
Zelenskyy stressed that Europeans must be involved at every stage so that guarantees are reliable "together with America." He said he and Trump discussed positive signals from Washington about taking part in those guarantees, but gave no detail. He has said before that European partners put on hold a plan for a foreign troop presence in Ukraine because it lacked an American backstop. France, the UK and Germany will co-host a video call Sunday afternoon of the "coalition of the willing," nations that could help monitor and uphold a deal, according to Emmanuel Macron's office.
Trump had offered Putin a red carpet on Friday, Putin's first US visit in a decade and his first since the full-scale invasion began. Afterward Trump gave little concrete detail, saying only that it "went very well." In Alaska he said "there's no deal until there's a deal," after Putin claimed the two had reached an "understanding" and warned Europe not to "torpedo the nascent progress." Before the summit Trump had warned of "very severe consequences" for Russia if Putin did not agree to end the war. In a Fox News interview he suggested the onus might now be on Zelenskyy "to get it done," with some European involvement.
Zelenskyy backed a trilateral meeting with the US and Russia, saying key issues can be discussed at leader level. But Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov told Russian state television the idea "has not been touched upon yet" in US-Russia discussions. Zelenskyy said he told Trump that sanctions should be strengthened if no such meeting happens or if Russia tries to evade an honest end to the war.
Fighting continues along a 1,000-kilometre front line, and since spring Russian troops have gained the most territory since the war's opening stages. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas noted that Moscow launched new attacks even as the delegations met, and said Putin left Anchorage without commitments. Neil Melvin of the Royal United Services Institute said Putin will consider the summit "mission accomplished." Russian officials called it a symbolic end to his isolation; Dmitry Medvedev praised talks "without ultimatums and threats." Former British ambassador Laurie Bristow noted that Trump also ignored the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant for Putin. Monday's meeting will show whether a trilateral summit has any footing.
Citazioni salienti
It is important that Europeans are involved at every stage to ensure reliable security guarantees together with America.— Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Unless Mr Putin is absolutely convinced that he cannot win militarily, the fighting is not going to stop.— Laurie Bristow, former British ambassador to Russia
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