President Donald Trump has eased his role in Ukraine peace talks, saying Putin and Zelenskyy must meet first.
The White House admits progress is slow, with security guarantees and NATO’s role still unresolved.
U.S. President Donald Trump has decided to scale back his direct involvement in efforts to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, according to administration officials. The move means that a trilateral meeting he previously proposed will now take place only after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy first meet one-on-one.
In a recent radio interview, Trump explained that he wanted to allow both leaders to engage directly before stepping in. “I just want to see the outcome of their discussions,” he said, describing his stance as a cautious, wait-and-see approach.
The White House admitted that progress has been slow, with no confirmed date or venue for a Putin–Zelenskyy meeting. After hosting talks with Zelenskyy and several European leaders in Washington, Trump later held a 40-minute call with Putin. Both sides agreed to appoint senior negotiators to pursue direct dialogue.
Security guarantees for Ukraine remain a major sticking point. Trump has floated the possibility of U.S. intelligence sharing and air support but has ruled out deploying American troops. Moscow, meanwhile, insists on playing a central role in providing any assurances a position Washington views with suspicion.
While NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte expressed guarded optimism, obstacles remain. Russia has long resisted direct negotiations with Zelenskyy, and there are disagreements over the scope of U.S. participation.
Adding to the controversy, Trump on Thursday posted on Truth Social that Ukraine “cannot win without invading Russia,” comments that stirred debate about his approach to the war.
Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, also reiterated Moscow’s uncompromising stance, saying any peace plan that strays from proposals put forward during the Istanbul talks in early 2022 was “futile.” Those talks, held soon after the invasion began, included Russian demands that Western nations be barred from assisting Ukraine in case of future attacks.
Lavrov stressed that foreign troops stationed in Ukraine would be “totally unacceptable,” warning that proposals involving Western military presence amounted to external intervention. He added that such plans were either publicity stunts or fundamentally unrealistic, and that Russia and “serious political actors in Europe” would not tolerate them.
Moscow has also pushed for China to be part of any future security framework. However, Zelenskyy has firmly rejected Beijing’s involvement, arguing that China neither prevented the war nor supported Ukraine when the conflict began. “We do not need guarantors who stood aside or helped Russia when we needed assistance most,” he said.
