Trump says ceasefire not necessary to negotiate Ukraine-Russia peace deal but US will give Kyiv ‘very good protection’ – live | Ukraine

Trump says he would prefer an immediate to ceasefire in Ukraine while they work on a peace deal, but “as of this moment, it’s not happening”.

Trump says after his summit with Putin he believes that peace is “within reach”.

In a “significant step”, Putin agreed Russia would accept security guarantees for Ukraine, he says.

He says the leaders at this meeting will be considering “who will do what, essentially” regarding Ukraine’s future security.

Trump says he’s optimistic that the group can reach an agreement that will deter future aggression against Ukraine, adding:

I actually think there won’t be. I even think that’s largely overrated.

“I think the European nations are going to take a lot of the burden,” he says, reiterating that the US will be involved. “We’re going to help them.”

The meeting will also discuss the “possible exchanges of territory”, he adds, ominously for Ukraine.

That multilateral meeting has just started between Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the European leaders at the White House.

Well, the optics of this initial meeting were far friendlier than the last time these people were all in the Oval Office together, and Zelenskyy and the other European leaders will no doubt be very pleased with how suit-gate was handled, for example – heck, there was even laughing at times.

But despite this lightheartedness, there were some worrying developments for Kyiv. Perhaps most key was Trump’s assertion that he’s decided he doesn’t need a ceasefire after all in order to negotiate a peace deal, after spending months demanding one from Russia and threatening sanctions and “severe consequences” if it didn’t comply. Things have clearly changed after his Alaska summit with Putin, who knows the US president wants more than anything a quick end to the war and has played this up to his advantage by blaming others for being the obstacle to peace.

But there were glimmers of hope for Kyiv, notably Trump saying the US would help with Ukraine’s security in a peace deal, giving Ukraine “very good protection”. But he remained uncommitted on what level of specific security guarantees the US is willing to support, for instance whether its involvement would include an Article 5-style defence commitment.

Whether Trump can now be convinced once again by Zelenskyy and the Europeans that the onus is on Russia to end its war, and not on Ukraine to give up territory, in order to achieve peace remains to be seen.

Earlier Trump was asked if he would offer Ukraine [Nato] Article 5-style security guarantees. He said this hasn’t been discussed yet but says of Kyiv:

We will give them very good protection, very good security. That’s part of it.

Trump says he just spoke to Putin indirectly, and will speak to him again after these meetings today “and we may or may not have a [trilateral meeting].”

“He’s expecting my call when we’re finished with this meeting,” Trump says.

Asked what security guarantees he needs from Trump, Zelenskyy says: “Everything.”

He says he needs a strong Ukrainian army – weapons, training, equipment, intelligence.

He says he will discuss this with “our partners”, the “big countries including the United States”.

Asked if there will still be “severe consequences” for Russia if a ceasefire isn’t agreed, as he previously said, Trump says:

I don’t think you need a ceasefire.

He says a ceasefire is “good to have” but he could understand why one country might not want one.

We can work a peace deal while they’re fighting. They have to fight. I wish they could stop, I’d like them to stop, but strategically that could be a disadvantage for one side or the other.

Trump also said earlier that he believes Vladimir Putin wants the war to end.