White House Confirms Plans Underway for Putin-Zelenskyy Meeting After Trump Summit

WASHINGTON – The White House confirmed Tuesday that plans for a direct meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are “underway,” following a major diplomatic push by U.S. President Donald Trump to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. The development comes after a high-stakes summit at the White House where President Trump hosted President Zelenskyy and key European leaders.

This new diplomatic effort aims to broker the first face-to-face talks between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders since the conflict escalated, representing what Zelenskyy called a “significant step toward ending the war.” A central focus of the White House discussions was the formalization of security guarantees for Ukraine, with the U.S. committing to a coordinating role while European nations would serve as the “first line of defense.” President Trump has definitively ruled out deploying U.S. troops to enforce any potential peace deal.

A New Push for Direct Talks

The momentum for a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting accelerated after President Trump revealed he had personally called the Russian president. “I called President Putin to begin the arrangements for a meeting…between President Putin and President Zelenskyy,” Trump stated during the summit.

According to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who was present at the talks, Putin told Trump he was ready to meet Zelenskyy “within the next two weeks.” However, the Kremlin’s official public response has been more measured. An aide, Yuri Ushakov, stated only that the leaders discussed “raising the level of representatives” at talks, without confirming a direct bilateral summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov added that any summit would require careful, step-by-step preparation, refusing to commit to a date.

Security Guarantees and US Role

President Zelenskyy has long maintained that security guarantees are a “key issue” and a “starting point towards ending the war.” He expressed appreciation for U.S. involvement, which includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading a working group to draft security proposals in coordination with European allies.

As part of these discussions, Zelenskyy indicated Ukraine’s pledge to buy as much as $90 billion in U.S.-made weapons, primarily aircraft and air defense systems, to bolster its defenses. This signals a new dynamic in military aid, focusing on large-scale U.S. arms sales.

Navigating the ICC Warrant

A significant logistical and political hurdle for any

Putin-Zelenskyy meeting is the outstanding International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued for the Russian president in 2023. The warrant, related to the alleged illegal deportation of Ukrainian children, obligates 125 member countries to arrest Putin if he enters their territory.

This complication has led to discussions about potential neutral venues. Switzerland, though an ICC member, has indicated it is open to hosting, with its foreign minister stating that special arrangements could be made due to the country’s “special role.” Other potential locations mentioned include Budapest, Austria, Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

Conflicting views on the necessity of an immediate ceasefire also present a challenge. President Trump stated he does not believe a ceasefire is “needed” for a deal to be worked on, while Chancellor Merz of Germany expressed that he “can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire.”