Trump meets European leaders, says Russia has agreed to security guarantees for Ukraine

US President Donald Trump on Monday said his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had at summit talks last week accepted that there would be security guarantees for Ukraine as part of any peace deal.

“In a very significant step, President Putin agreed that Russia would accept security guarantees for Ukraine and this is one of the key points that we need to consider and we’re going to be considering that at the table, also who will do what essentially,” AFP quoted Trump as saying as he opened talks with European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.

“I think the European nations are going to take a lot of the burden. We’re going to help them and we’re going to make it very secure,” he said.

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Trump called it a “significant step,” signaling a shift in Moscow’s position and offering new hope for a lasting settlement. He said discussions now center on who will do what regarding Ukraine’s future security.

The Russian leader’s concession was confirmed by US envoy Steve Witkoff, who highlighted its game-changing potential — especially as it marked the first time Putin had indicated acceptance of Nato-like protections for Ukraine.

Trump expressed optimism that the group of leaders meeting in Washington could reach an agreement strong enough to deter any future Russian aggression.

“We’re going to help them,” said Trump.

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He acknowledged that the US would remain involved, though he also expects European nations to shoulder much of the responsibility in Ukraine’s defence.

On the matter of territorial discussions, Trump indicated that “possible exchanges of territory” would be on the agenda — a point that remains contentious and worrisome for Kyiv, which opposes any unilateral ceding of land.

This diplomatic development unfolds as Ukraine continues to face relentless Russian attacks on civilian areas, highlighting the urgency and complexity of achieving a sustainable peace agreement.

Meanwhile, during the meeting, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, called for a ceasefire in Ukraine before a leaders’ summit, contradicting President Trump’s call to work for a peace deal with Russia instead.

“I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire, so let’s work on that and let’s try to put pressure on Russia,” AFP quoted Merz as saying.

During the discussions, French President Emmanuel Macron pitched a four-party meeting involving European leaders in response to US President Donald Trump’s proposal to bring together the Ukrainian and Russian presidents for peace talks.

“I think as a follow-up we would need probably a quadrilateral meeting, because when we speak about security guarantees, we speak about the whole security of the European continent,” he said.

European leaders — including those from the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Finland, the EU, and NATO — gathered in Washington to show unified support for Ukraine and to push for enforceable post-war security guarantees.

Many of them have expressed concern that Trump may push Zelenskyy toward a ceasefire deal aligned with Moscow’s interests, particularly after Trump’s warm reception of Putin during their recent meeting in Alaska.

Zelenskyy has said any potential peace deal must be “lasting” and not repeat past failures, such as Ukraine’s forced concessions in Crimea and eastern Donbas or broken security guarantees.

With inputs from agencies