Washington, United States -During his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Friday, US President Donald Trump stressed that the time has come to reach a peace agreement with Russia. The goal is to end the war in Ukraine, which has been raging for more than two years.
Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform: “The meeting with the Ukrainian president was very friendly.
It’s time to stop the killing and strike a deal between Russia and Ukraine. The bloodshed must stop, both sides must declare victory, and everyone must go home.
The US president added: “Thousands of people are being killed every week because of this war, and this cannot continue. The war would never have started in the first place if I were president.”
Zelensky’s position on the negotiations
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his openness to any bilateral or trilateral dialogue formats. He also affirmed his willingness to consider any proposals that could bring his country closer to achieving peace.
But he stressed at the same time that Moscow was still pursuing its “invasion” of Ukraine.
Zelensky also denied any agreement to supply his country with Tomahawk missiles, stressing that Washington does not seek military escalation.
Trump: Putin wants to end the war
The meeting between Trump and Zelensky came a day after Trump’s surprise announcement of an upcoming summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
During the meeting, Trump stated, “I think President Putin wants to end the war, but he may be trying to buy time.” Zelenskyy, meanwhile, said Putin is “not ready” for peace yet.
Importance of the meeting
Zelensky’s visit to the White House comes at a particularly sensitive time, as Washington seeks to play a key role in ending the Russia-Ukraine war, which has caused massive human and economic losses.
Amid internal and external pressure to reach a negotiated formula that would end the conflict and avoid further escalation.
