Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the White House on Monday in a black military-style suit for his meeting with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, after being criticised just months earlier for appearing without one.
In contrast to the encounter in February, when Trump and US Vice President J.D. Vance rebuked him for a “disrespectful attitude,” Monday’s meeting struck a markedly different tone.
During their second meeting in the Oval Office this year, Trump said the US would be willing to support European efforts to police any peace deal in Ukraine, while Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude and Vance kept his mouth shut.
Fielding questions from journalists, Zelenskyy was all smiles after Brian Glenn, chief White House correspondent of Real America’s Voice and boyfriend of Republican US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, complimented him: "You look fabulous in that suit!".
Trump chimed in right after: “I said the same thing!”. He also pointed out to the Ukrainian leader about Glenn: “That's the one that attacked you last time.”
Zelenskyy replied that he remembered the reporter and added: “You are wearing the same suit. I changed. You did not.”
Following the talks, Trump said he would work to arrange a meeting between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The US President reportedly also called Putin, who got the red carpet treatment at a summit in Alaska last Friday with Trump, to discuss the extraordinary gathering of allies.
Trump said after Zelenskyy and Putin meet that a key next step would be holding a meeting with all three of them.
Trump suggests security guarantees for Ukraine
A central question for peace talks is how to prevent further Russian aggression in the future.
Trump has ruled out allowing Ukraine to join Nato but expressed support for security guarantees for Ukraine, though details remain vague.
European countries “want to give protection and they feel very strongly about it and we'll help them out with that,” Trump said.
That pleased Zelenskyy, who said the US was offering "such (a) strong signal and is ready for security guarantees.”
Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said Sunday that Moscow was open to accepting Nato-style protections for Ukraine.
At the White House, European leaders praised that notion, and the larger meaning it would carry.
“When we speak about security guarantees, we speak about the whole security of the European continent," French President Emmanuel Macron said.
But it's unclear what Moscow would accept because Russia's foreign ministry has rejected the idea of a Nato peacekeeping force in Ukraine.
Europeans praise Trump, say tough work ahead
The Europeans came to show a united front on Ukraine, and many used public comments to heap praise on Trump. That was striking given tensions over Trump's threats to impose steep tariffs and other issues.
Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte called Trump “dear Donald” and said of fighting in Ukraine: ”If we play this well, we could end it.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said all the parties were working together on “a just and lasting peace.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the meetings could lead to “a really important step forward today” and the outcome might be “a historic step actually to come out of this meeting in terms of security for Ukraine and security in Europe.”
Offering a more measured tone was German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said “the path is open now” to halting the fighting but next steps are “more complicated.”
“Let's try to put pressure on Russia,” Merz said, adding that he would like to see a ceasefire come together.
Trump was noncommittal, saying, “If we can do the ceasefire, great,” but suggested it was far from a dealbreaker.
He dropped his push for a ceasefire after Friday's summit, aligning with Putin's position that negotiations should focus on a long-term settlement instead.
The good feelings extended to Zelenskyy and Trump. After Ukraine's leader praised the “very good conversation” with Trump, the US President responded, “Great remarks. I appreciated it.”
Next steps turn back to Putin
Trump, who bragged on numerous occasions during the campaign that he could settle Russia's war in Ukraine in a day, said repeatedly Monday that it was far more complicated than he ever thought it would be.
But he also suggested — likely implausibly — that the fighting that has raged for years could wind down quickly.
“A week or two weeks, we'll know whether we're going to solve this, or if this horrible fighting is going to continue,” said Trump, even suggesting the issues yet to be hammered out weren't “overly complex.”
Still, much remains unresolved, including red lines that are incompatible — like whether Ukraine will cede any land to Russia, the future of Ukraine's army and whether the country will ultimately have lasting and meaningful security guarantees against further Russian aggression.