Trump talks to Zelenskyy and NATO chiefs after meeting with Putin
Photo: US President Donald Trump (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after he met with Vladimir Putin. Trump also called NATO leaders, according to The Guardian.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that, during his flight to Washington, Trump had a "lengthy" call with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy.
As of 9:30 a.m. Kyiv time, the US president was on the phone with NATO leaders. Trump's disembarkation from the plane was delayed as he was finishing the call.
Axios journalist Barak Ravid wrote on X that Donald Trump's phone conversation with Zelenskyy and European allies lasted more than 1.5 hours.
As reported by the media with reference to the European Commission, besides Zelenskyy, the following took part in the conversation:
- President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen,
- President of France Emmanuel Macron,
- Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz,
- President of Finland Alexander Stubb,
- President of Poland Karol Nawrocki,
- Prime Minister of Britain Keir Starmer.
Also participating were NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Special Representative Steve Witkoff.
Ukraine's Presidential Office confirms the call
Presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn confirmed to reporters that the conversation between Zelenskyy and Trump took place and has already concluded.
It is noted that this was a lengthy call: first, Zelenskyy and Trump spoke one-on-one, and then European leaders joined the conversation.
Details from Zelenskyy
Later, the President of Ukraine reported that he spoke with Trump one-on-one, and then also with the participation of European leaders. The one-on-one conversation lasted an hour, followed by another half hour of general discussion.
He confirmed that he is ready for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, America, and Russia, and emphasized that key issues can be discussed at the level of leaders.
"All details on the completion of killings, on the completion of the war, I intend to discuss with President Trump in Washington on Monday. Grateful for the invitation," reported Zelenskyy.
The President emphasized the importance of the participation of Europeans in security guarantees together with the US.
"We discussed positive signals from the American side regarding participation in guaranteeing security for Ukraine," he added.
Trump–Putin meeting
US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin held talks on Friday, August 15 (overnight August 15–16 Kyiv time), at a military base in Anchorage, Alaska.
The meeting was held in a three-on-three format and lasted nearly three hours. On the US side, Trump was joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff. The Russian delegation included Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential aide Yuri Ushakov alongside Putin.
After the talks, the leaders held a joint press conference, but journalists were not allowed to ask questions.
Trump stated that no agreement on Ukraine had been reached, though "some progress" was made.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that the US president handed Putin a letter from Melania Trump concerning Ukrainian children.
