Zelenskyy backs Trump's suggestion to stop war 'as it is', says Putin 'is afraid'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed support for his US counterpart Donald Trump’s suggestion that Moscow and Kyiv should “stop the war where we are” and commence peace negotiations. The remarks from the Ukrainian leader came after he held talks with Trump at the White House on Friday.

“He is right. The president is right, and we have to stop where we are,” Zelenskyy told reporters after meeting Trump at the White House on Friday. “This is important, to stop where we are and then to speak.” Meanwhile, Trump took to TruthSocial and said that the meeting with Zelenskyy was “very interesting and cordial,” and he urged Kyiv and Moscow to “stop the killing and make a deal.”

“They should stop where they are. Let both claim victory, let history decide,” Trump wrote. While speaking to reporters, Zelenskyy described the discussions as “productive,” citing talks on air defence and production. “We spoke about long range, of course,” he said. “We decided that we don’t speak about it because nobody wants — I mean, the United States doesn’t want this.”

Zelenskyy believes ‘Putin is afraid’

While speaking to NBC News, Zelenskyy said, “It’s good that President Trump didn’t say ’no’ but for today, didn’t say ‘yes’,” about the supply of long-range Tomahawk missiles. He went on to admit that the American leader was concerned about a potential escalation with Russia, but Zelenskyy admitted that even Russian President Vladimir Putin is also afraid of the weapon system.

“I think that Putin [is] afraid that the United States will deliver us Tomahawks. And I think that he [is] really afraid that we will use them,” he said. It is pertinent to note that while Trump did not rule out providing the Tomahawk missiles, he appeared cool to the prospect as he looked ahead to a meeting with his Russian counterpart in Hungary in the coming weeks.

After his meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy spoke with European and NATO leaders on the details of the talks. In the conversation, the Ukrainian leader stressed the joint goal of safeguarding lives and strengthening security across Europe, Sky News reported.

Zelenskyy said in a post that he held talks with the leaders from the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Finland, Norway and Poland, as well as with the heads of the European Union and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

“I shared details of my conversation with US President Donald Trump. We discussed many important issues. The main priority now is to protect as many lives as possible, guarantee security for Ukraine, and strengthen all of us in Europe,” he wrote on Telegram. He added that national security advisors from the involved countries will meet to coordinate next steps, expressing gratitude for continued support and solidarity with Ukraine.

With inputs from agencies.