 "Ahead of Zelenskyy meet, Trump rules out Crimea return, Nato membership")
Ahead of his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, US President Donald Trump said late on Sunday that reclaiming Russian-occupied Crimea or Ukraine joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) were not options. He added that Zelenskyy had the choice to bring the war with Russia to a swift end.
"President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!," he wrote on Truth Social.
European leaders to join Zelenskyy in Washington
European leaders from Germany, France, and Britain will accompany Zelenskyy to meet Trump in Washington, they announced on Sunday. Their presence is intended to strengthen Zelenskyy’s position and help him avoid a repeat of his last Oval Office visit in February, when Trump and US Vice President JD Vance publicly rebuked him, accusing him of being ungrateful and disrespectful.
Trump said the responsibility now lay with Zelenskyy to build on the Alaska summit and work towards a settlement to end Russia’s three-year invasion. ALSO READ | Trump's peace deal demands leave Zelenskyy with only tough choices
Trump-Putin talks in Alaska
Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Alaska on Friday, where they identified areas of common ground and revived their rapport. However, no breakthrough on a ceasefire was reached. After three hours of talks with aides that ended abruptly, Trump stated that while progress had been made, stressing that “there's no deal until we have a deal".
The discussions included proposals under which Russia might give up small sections of occupied Ukrainian territory in return for Ukraine ceding fortified areas in the east and freezing the front lines elsewhere.
Trump praised both US and Russian negotiators for their work at the summit and pointed to his relationship with Putin. Neither leader took questions, delivering only short statements.
Goal to reduce casualties
Trump said the key aim of the meeting was to reduce the human toll of the war. “We're going to stop 5,000, 6,000, 7,000 people a week from being killed, and President Putin wants to see that as much as I do,” he said.
Trump denounces 'fake news'
The US President criticised reports suggesting a "major defeat" at his Alaska talks with Putin. He described such claims as "fake news" and said the location of the summit itself had been a “major point of contention”.