Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reiterated that ending the war rests on Russia, as he prepares for high-level talks with US President Donald Trump and European leaders in Washington on Monday.
Trump, who last week met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska without securing a ceasefire, has pressed Kyiv to cede Crimea and abandon its NATO aspirations. He said on Sunday that Zelensky could end the three-and-a-half-year conflict “almost immediately, if he wants to.”
In response, Zelensky insisted Russia must halt its aggression. “Ukrainians are fighting for their land, their independence. I believe our strength, together with America and our European friends, will force Russia into a real peace,” he said.
The Washington talks are expected to include Trump, Zelensky, NATO chief Mark Rutte, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and Finland. China has also called for all parties to commit to peace “as soon as possible.”
The meeting comes amid renewed Russian strikes, with Ukrainian officials reporting at least 140 drones and four ballistic missiles launched overnight. A drone attack in Kharkiv killed at least seven people, while Moscow-backed authorities said Ukrainian shelling in occupied Kherson and Donetsk killed two.
Trump has floated the idea of US-backed security guarantees for Ukraine outside NATO, while his envoys have hinted at possible Russian concessions over occupied territories in Donetsk. Zelensky, however, maintains that Ukraine’s constitution forbids ceding land.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and four more regions in 2022, though it does not fully control them. A source told AFP that Trump indicated to European leaders he might support a deal granting Moscow parts of Donbas it has yet to capture, in exchange for freezing the front lines in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
