Volodymyr Zelensky only waited a matter of minutes to publicly reject an overnight demand from Donald Trump before their White House meeting alongside European leaders on Monday.
Trump used his Truth Social account to show his apparent stance going into the meeting, writing, “President Zelensky of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight.”
Trump’s post repeated the demands Russian President Vladimir Putin had put on ending the war, and which have been rejected previously.
“Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE,” Trump wrote. “Some things never change!!!”
The two are expected to see each other at 1:00 p.m. ET on Monday before entering the meeting at 1:15 p.m. ET. After inconclusive peace talks with Putin in Alaska, Trump called Zelensky on Saturday, with the Ukrainian president agreeing to the Monday meeting to “discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war.”
During the call, Trump offered support for U.S. security assurance for Ukraine after the war, a shift from his stance that Europe should bear the burden of protecting the country, though the specifics were unclear.
The last meeting at the White House saw Zelensky criticized for not wearing a suit before being berated by Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
After landing in D.C. on Sunday, Zelensky took to his social media to post he was “grateful” to Trump for the invitation and said, “we all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably.”
The Ukrainian leader, however, then approached the issue of Crimea in his X post. The foundations of the current war began in 2014, when Russia invaded the Crimean Peninsula, which was part of Ukraine, and annexed it.
In February 2022, Russia started the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II when it invaded Ukraine.
“Peace must be lasting,” Zelensky said in his post. “Not like it was years ago, when Ukraine was forced to give up Crimea and part of our East—part of Donbas—and Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack.”
He added, “Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022. Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their independence. Now, our soldiers have successes in Donetsk and Sumy regions.”
While Zelensky did not link the issue of Crimea to Trump’s post, the president had posted his own message to Zelensky just 90 minutes earlier.
Zelensky did address Trump directly at one point, however, writing, “I am confident that we will defend Ukraine, effectively guarantee security, and that our people will always be grateful to President Trump, everyone in America, and every partner and ally for their support and invaluable assistance.”
He also addressed Trump’s messaging on the conflict between the countries, with the Ukrainian president stating, “Russia must end this war, which it itself started. And I hope that our joint strength with America, with our European friends, will force Russia into a real peace.”
Zelensky will be joined at the meeting by fellow European leaders U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and French President Emmanuel Macron.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will also be present, confirming she was attending the meeting “at the request of President Zelensky.”
On Sunday, Trump posted that the White House had “Never had so many European Leaders at one time” and that it was his “great honor to host them!!!”
The extra European support is said to be in aid of Zelensky after his last disastrous visit and Vance’s Oval Office attack.
When Trump mentioned a ceasefire, Zelensky said, “We don’t just need a ceasefire. We’ve done that before—Putin violated it 25 times, including during your presidency, Mr. President.”
Vance pointed his finger at Zelensky during the meeting and said, “Do you think that it’s respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country?”
Trump added, “If you didn’t have our military equipment, this war would’ve been over in two weeks! You have to be thankful, you don’t have the cards.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied the European leaders are there for reinforcement.
“They’re not coming here to keep Zelensky from getting bullied,” he told Margaret Brennan on CBS’s Face the Nation.
“They are coming here tomorrow because we’ve been working with the Europeans. We invited them to come.”
