The participants of the meeting on August 18 at the White House – the presidents of Ukraine, the USA, Finland, the German Chancellor, the prime ministers of Great Britain, France, Italy, the head of the European Commission and the NATO Secretary General – demonstrated relative unity regarding the cessation of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine. But some issues remained unresolved, UNN reports with reference to The New York Times.
Details
According to the publication, most of the meeting was devoted to what security guarantees European countries and the United States would provide to Ukraine if Zelensky agreed to a ceasefire agreement. In addition, Donald Trump spoke with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to discuss the details of a possible multilateral meeting. However, it is currently unknown when or if such a meeting will take place at all.
The New York Times presents 5 conclusions from the meeting:
Leaders demonstrated a relatively unified position
The meeting participants agreed on a plan to organize direct talks between Zelensky and Putin while other issues are being resolved. This includes the exact nature of security guarantees for Ukraine and what territory, if any, Ukraine can actually cede to the Russians.
At the same time, some disagreements emerged. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz advocated for a truce before further negotiations with Russia, but Trump gently rejected this proposal. And French President Emmanuel Macron expressed skepticism about Putin's good faith.
I am not convinced that President Putin also seeks peace
Trump spoke generally about security guarantees for Ukraine
On social media, Trump called the meeting "productive." At the same time, he did not directly answer whether he would send American troops to Ukraine as peacekeepers.
European leaders insisted that Trump provide security guarantees similar to NATO's Article 5, meaning that an attack on Ukraine would be considered an attack on all NATO countries.
We will give them very good protection and very good security
When asked what security guarantees he wanted, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky replied: "Everything."
Trump engaged in some diplomatic activity with Putin
Former President Joseph Biden once called Putin a "bloody dictator," but Trump has long had a more positive view of the Russian president.
The current US president continued to portray Putin as someone genuinely interested in finding a way to end the war he himself started. At one point, Trump interrupted his meeting with European leaders in the East Room of the White House to call the Russian dictator.
After that, Trump stated on social media that he called Putin to begin organizing a meeting between Zelensky and the Russian leader. He said he would then try to meet with both leaders in a trilateral meeting. However, it was unclear whether all parties agreed to this.
At the same time, Yuriy Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy adviser, stated that Putin and Trump had a "frank and very constructive" phone conversation about a meeting with Zelensky and European leaders at the White House.
In diplomatic language, a "frank conversation" often means that the parties have not reached full agreement.
The statement also says that the Russian and American leaders agreed to appoint more senior negotiators for direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, but it does not mention whether Putin himself will participate. And although Putin did not refuse to meet with Zelensky, he made it clear that he does not consider the Ukrainian president legitimate and equal to himself.
Zelensky said Ukraine would buy $90 billion worth of American weapons
Trump said he did not want to provide additional aid to Ukraine, but was willing to sell weapons to help Ukrainians repel Russian attacks. On Monday, Zelensky expressed particular interest in acquiring additional Patriot air defense systems to minimize damage from continuous Russian missile strikes.
Zelensky told reporters on Monday that as part of any security guarantees, Ukraine would purchase $90 billion worth of American weapons through Europe, and the US would buy drones from Ukraine. He noted that a formal agreement still needs to be concluded. But an agreement of this magnitude would be a significant step towards ensuring that Ukrainian forces continue to fight against Russia and have a reliable defense in case a peace agreement is concluded.
Recall
The Institute for the Study of War reported that Ukraine needs international security guarantees and the deployment of a peacekeeping contingent to deter future Russian aggression. The full occupation of Donbas will allow the Russians to resume the war against Ukraine on more favorable terms.