Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump have started their talks at the White House.
The Ukrainian president and his American counterpart shook hands upon Mr Zelenskyy’s arrival at the White House.
The greeting was friendly, with Mr Trump putting his arm around Mr Zelenskyy’s shoulder for a brief moment as both smiled.
Donald Trump put an arm around Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s shoulder during their greeting. Pic: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque
They then headed into the Oval Office, where Mr Zelenskyy thanked Mr Trump for his “efforts and personal efforts to stop killings and stop this war”.
The Ukrainian added: “We need to stop this war to stop Russia, and we need support, American and European partners,” with Mr Trump saying there will be some form of security guarantees for Ukraine.
This would include US involvement in providing them, but Mr Trump did not say whether any security guarantees would involve US troops. He later added that the US will provide “very good protection” for Ukraine.
Both were seen flashing a smile. Pic: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque
Tri-lateral meeting possible
The US president said that “if everything works out well today”, there will be a tri-lateral meeting between himself, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mr Zelenskyy. The latter said he was ready for such a meeting.
At the end of the news conference in the Oval Office, Mr Putin said he would have a call with Mr Putin “right after” the White House meetings.
Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy will later meet European leaders, including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and France’s Emmanuel Macron, for a multi-lateral meeting in the White House’s East Room.
Mr Zelenskyy gestures during a meeting with Mr Trump at the Oval Office
The talks come just days after Mr Trump’s Alaska summit with Mr Putin.
At the summit, Mr Putin has reportedly made demands to take control of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine as a condition for ending the war.
In exchange, Russia would give up other Ukrainian territories held by its troops, according to several news reports citing sources close to the matter.
Russian troops currently occupy large parts of the two regions and, in September 2022, Moscow announced it was officially annexing them, alongside the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, in a move rejected and condemned as illegal by the West.
Read more: Putin’s demands would be bitter blow to Ukraine
Donald Trump warmly greeted Vladimir Putin at the Alaska summit. Pic: AP
Mr Trump is said to be planning to urge Mr Zelenskyy to agree to the conditions as part of a peace deal to end the war – despite the Ukrainian president previously ruling out handing any territory to Moscow.
Infamous Oval Office clash
The previous time Mr Zelenskyy visited the White House, his meeting with Mr Trump and vice president JD Vance descended into chaos when Mr Vance berated Ukraine’s leader for being insufficiently grateful for US help – in front of the media.
He completed his ambush of Mr Zelenskyy by mocking him for not wearing a suit, with Mr Trump adding that the Ukrainian did not “have the cards right now with us”.
Read more:
Why is Zelenskyy bringing a posse of European leaders to talks?
Analysis: Meeting will be no repeat of Oval Office meltdown
The disastrous meeting ended with Mr Zelenskyy prematurely leaving the White House. He later said the bust-up was “not good for both sides”.
This time, Mr Zelenskyy appeared to set the tone by arriving at the White House dressed in a smart black collared shirt and black jacket with lapels.
Sky News’ US correspondent Mark Stone said he believes this “will be seen as a really important moment. We have learnt with Donald Trump that the trivial matters as much as the detail”.
Speaking after Mr Zelenskyy and Mr Trump answered questions from reporters in the Oval Office, Mr Stone said: “Zelenskyy’s learned from that moment six months ago and he’s learned from what other European leaders and other world leaders have learned as well with these Oval Office moments – that the best policy is to say as little as possible.”
Mr Stone explained how the best tactic for dealing with Mr Trump in front of reporters is: “Don’t answer the question. Don’t rise to the bait. Get in there and out as soon and as quickly as you can and this time, that is precisely what Zelenskyy did.”
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