U.S. President Donald Trump has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to seek a negotiated settlement with Russia, stating that Kyiv cannot regain Crimea—annexed by Moscow in 2014—nor join NATO, Reuters reports.
“Zelensky can end the war with Russia almost immediately if he wants, or he can keep fighting. Remember how this began. Crimea will never return, and there is no path for Ukraine into NATO,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Zelensky, together with European leaders, is meeting Trump in Washington today to discuss a potential peace deal, amid concerns the U.S. president might pressure Kyiv into a settlement favorable to Moscow.
On Friday, after hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Trump said an agreement to end the war—now in its 42nd month, with tens of thousands dead and millions displaced—should be reached soon.
Zelensky, however, has rejected key parts of Putin’s proposals, including demands that Ukraine surrender all of Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces still hold roughly a quarter of the region.
“We need real negotiations, starting from the current front lines. Our constitution does not allow us to give up territory,” Zelensky stressed in Brussels on Sunday.
European leaders from Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Finland, and NATO will join the talks in Washington to bolster Zelensky. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has voiced support for strong security guarantees for Ukraine, similar to NATO’s Article 5.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio dismissed claims that European leaders are coming to protect Zelensky from Trump, insisting instead that the talks reflect “joint transatlantic coordination.”
The stakes remain high: Russia continues to advance slowly, while Ukraine relies heavily on U.S. weapons and intelligence. With ties between Washington and Kyiv increasingly strained since Trump took office in January, Kyiv is forced to tread carefully—balancing survival with diplomacy.
