Washington, August 14, 2025 – The Europe Today: U.S. President Donald Trump has announced plans to convene a three-way meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin immediately after his upcoming summit with Putin in Alaska, aimed at seeking an end to the three-year war in Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters after what he described as a “very good” call with European leaders, including Zelenskyy, Trump said the initial meeting with Putin — scheduled for Friday (Saturday NZT) in Anchorage — could be swiftly followed by a trilateral session. “If the first one goes okay, we’ll have a quick second one between President Putin and President Zelenskyy and myself, if they’d like to have me there,” Trump stated.
The high-stakes summit comes amid mounting pressure on Trump to fulfill his campaign pledge to end the war, as Russian forces make their largest advance in more than a year. Media reports noted that Zelenskyy, who was not invited to Anchorage, has joined European leaders in urging Trump to press for a ceasefire.
The stepped-up Russian offensive has fueled concerns among Kyiv and its allies that Trump and Putin could reach an agreement imposing significant concessions on Ukraine. While Trump had vowed repeatedly during his 2024 campaign to secure peace on his first day in office, progress has been limited.
The U.S. leader previously threatened “secondary sanctions” on Russia’s trading partners in response to the invasion, but a key deadline for such measures passed last week without action.
According to an AFP analysis of battlefield data from the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War, Russian forces achieved substantial territorial gains in Ukraine this week.
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy traveled to Berlin, where he joined German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, EU leaders, and other European officials in an online call with Trump to emphasize the need for a united stance against Russia.
