Donald Trump claimed to have begun the arrangement, and Moscow responded with caution by cooling down the “Russian-ukrainian presidential meeting”
On August 18, the Ukrainian president, Zelenskiy, accompanied by seven European leaders, set foot on American soil again and held talks with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, at the White House. In contrast to the acrimonious row that erupted at the White House six months ago, Zelenskiy softened his stance, donning a more formal black outfit and saying “Thank You” four times in the first 10 seconds. While the meeting was cordial, the differences between the United States and Ukraine and Europe remained evident. Donald Trump immediately questioned the European position on the need for a “Cease-fire” between Russia and Ukraine, insisting peace talks do not need a cease-fire first. He also said the United States is willing to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, but Europe should be“Mainly responsible.”. During multilateral meetings, Donald Trump even abruptly broke off discussions and got up to call Russian President Putin. After the meeting, Donald Trump posted on social media that he had begun arranging bilateral meetings between Putin and Zelenskiy, followed by a trilateral meeting of us, Russian and Ukrainian leaders. However, Ushatkov, an aide to the Russian president, said on the 19th that in a phone call from Donald Trump to Putin, both sides expressed “Support for the Russian and Ukrainian delegations to continue direct negotiations”.
August 18, U. S. and Ukrainian presidents held talks (vision of China)
Zelenskiy: the most successful meeting
At 1:00 p.m. local time on the 18th, Zelenskiy’s car pulled into the White House, Donald Trump in the west wing to meet the entrance. This is Zelenskiy at the White House for the first time in six months. In a press opening before a closed-door meeting with Zelenskiy, Donald Trump said the US was willing to provide security guarantees. But he stressed that Europe should take the lead in securing Ukraine, “They are the first line of defence because they are there, but we will also assist them”.
The atmosphere of the meeting between Zelenskiy and Donald Trump was closely watched. Six months ago, a heated Oval Office spat broke out between the two sides, in which Vance, the vice-president, lashed out at Zelensky for being ungrateful or even “Not saying thank you”. This time, Zelenskiy softened up and said “Thank you” four times in the first 10 seconds.
Zelenskiy’s clothes became the focus of attention for both men and reporters. Zelenskiy swapped his usual army green for a black suit (black jacket, shirt and pants) . Although he chose a black jacket over a formal suit, “I love it,” Donald Trump said, adding that Glenn, the American journalist who criticized Zelenskiy in February for “Not wearing a suit,”“Looks great.”. “I remember you,” Zelenskiy said, “You’re still wearing the same clothes. I changed, but you didn’t.” This time, the White House “Asked Zelenskiy in advance to dress formally,” according to Axios.
ABC said the meeting was cordial and Zelenskiy thanked Donald Trump for his “Personal efforts” to end the Russian-ukrainian conflict. According to the Daily Mail, Donald Trump displayed a “Patriarchal sense of superiority” in his meetings with Zelenskiy through gestures such as a pat on the shoulder.
Although no agreement was reached and no joint press conference was held, Zelenskiy said in a separate press conference after the meeting that it was “The most successful meeting” between the US and Ukraine. Ukraine, he said, was“Convinced that the war will end, that the key is not a pause in the fighting, but a real peace with security, and that Ukraine is no longer insisting on a ceasefire as a precondition for continuing negotiations”. Zelenskiy also said Donald Trump supported a trilateral us-russia-ukraine Summit, agreed to it himself and was prepared to meet Putin “In any form”. However, he stressed that territorial issues could only be discussed during his talks with Putin.
In a meeting with Zelenskiy, Donald Trump showed a map of russian-controlled areas marked in orange and red, according to Pravda. It is reported that the areas marked in orange and red represent about 20 per cent of the total territory of Ukraine. The BBC said it was an attempt by Donald Trump to pressure Zelenskiy into accepting the idea of “Territorial concessions for peace”.
The differences between the US and Europe remain stark
Following the us-ukraine meeting, Donald Trump held a number of meetings with Zelenskiy and seven European leaders. According to Politico’s European edition, the seven European leaders are like the“Seven warriors” who protected small villages from bandits in a movie from the last century, they became Zelenskiy’s “European bodyguards” to help him fend off American pressure.
On August 18, the leaders of the United States, Ukraine and Europe met in various ways (with China in mind)
European leaders have again called for a“Cease-fire”. In public remarks at various meetings, German Chancellor Merz reiterated that European leaders preferred a cease-fire first. He said that now has entered the“Complex negotiations” stage, all parties want to see a ceasefire, “I can not imagine (Russia and Ukraine) meeting will be held without a ceasefire.”. In response, Donald Trump asked “Is it necessary” and said “We can talk while we fight”. A cease-fire would be nice, he said, but of the“Six wars” he recently“Resolved,” none came first, and“We went straight into negotiations.”.
Another major concern for Europe is the issue of security guarantees. “Security guarantees” were mentioned nearly 20 times in the opening remarks of multilateral meetings. Ukraine and Europe want the United States to provide security“Similar to NATO Article 5,” Bloomberg said. While Donald Trump said he would help provide European security for Ukraine, it was not clear whether the US would send troops directly. In an interview with the Fox News Channel after the talks, Lütter, NATO secretary-general, said the exact form of security guarantees would be the focus of further discussions, with the extent of American involvement yet to be discussed.
To the consternation of European leaders, Donald Trump displayed “Trust” in Putin during the talks. According to the German newspaper Bild, Donald Trump abruptly broke off the meeting in the middle of a series of meetings to talk to Russian President Putin on the phone, leaving European leaders on the sidelines for more than 40 minutes. According to the independent, a “Whisper” by Donald Trump to Maqueron, the French president, sitting next to him, was leaked during multiple meetings because the microphone was not turned off. Donald Trump whispered to Maqueron, “I think he [ Putin ] is trying to make a [ peace ] deal for me, you know, as crazy as that sounds.”
In contrast to Putin, Donald Trump was cool to European leaders’ desire to “Sit at the negotiating table”. During the multi-party meeting, Maqueron called for a “Quadripartite meeting” involving European representatives on the basis of a trilateral us-russia-ukraine summit. “The Ukraine issue concerns the security of the entire European continent, so Europe must participate in the core negotiations as an equal rather than be excluded,” he said. However, Donald Trump did not respond to a request for comment.
“Europe no longer has a say in the The Daily Telegraph,” says the British newspaper, arguing that European leaders have not yet realised how irrelevant they have become.
The United States and Russia, the temperature difference is obvious
After the us-ukraine meeting, Donald Trump said in a post on his social networking platform realsocialite on the 18th that he had “Fruitful meetings” with Ukrainian President Zelenskiy and European leaders. Donald Trump said he had telephoned Russian President Putin to set up a bilateral meeting with Zelenskiy, which would be followed by trilateral us-russian-ukrainian talks. “This is an important first step towards peace for a war that has lasted almost four years,” he stressed.
US and Russian presidents for the phone call, Russian presidential assistant Ushatkov 19, said the call was initiated by the US president. In a briefing on his meetings with Zelenskiy and European leaders, Putin noted the importance of Donald Trump’s efforts to find a long-term solution to the Ukrainian problem. Ushatkov said both presidents had expressed “Support for the Russian and Ukrainian delegations to continue their direct negotiations” and had discussed raising the level of their direct negotiators. But Ushatkov made no direct mention of the Russian-ukrainian leaders or the trilateral meeting.
In an interview after the meeting, Maqueron said he hoped Russian-ukrainian contacts could resume “In the next few days”. But he is sceptical that “Their talks will be decisive and I remain cautious”, and has threatened tougher sanctions if the process is rejected by Putin. Finnish president Stubb also expressed doubts that Putin would participate in the trilateral talks. He said there was a need to see whether Putin would actually attend such a meeting or if he was stalling again.
“Is it true that Putin and Zelenskiy will meet in the coming days?” RIA Novosti said the Kremlin’s comments were less optimistic and Ushatkov was careful in his language. According to the report, statements by Zelenskiy and European leaders showed no fundamental change in their positions. Zelenskiy said the territorial issue should be discussed in talks between Russian and Ukrainian presidents. This in effect meant that Kiev refused to hand over territory, as well as the summit itself, because Putin would not meet Zelenskiy without a resolution of the territorial issue.
Russian foreign minister Lavroff told Russian 24 television channel on the 19th that if the Russian and Ukrainian presidents want to meet, “They must first make very full preparations.”. He stressed that any peace agreement on the Ukraine issue must ensure Russia’s security, “There can be no long-term agreement without respect for Russia’s security interests and full respect for the rights of Russians and Russian speakers living in Ukraine.”.