US President Donald Trump has proposed that Russia and Ukraine freeze their conflict along the current frontline, warning that a failure to do so could mean the war “may never be resolved.”
Following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday, Trump urged both sides to “make a deal.” However, he stopped short of committing to provide the Tomahawk cruise missiles and other advanced aid Kyiv has requested to pressure Moscow to the negotiating table, in what was likely a disappointing outcome for the Ukrainian leader, Bloomberg reported.
Zelenskyy had hoped the meeting would be an opportunity to leverage Trump’s recent frustrations with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to end the fighting. But the US president, who spoke with Putin on Thursday and agreed to another summit, backed away from any new military aid or sanctions.
“In my opinion, the war must stop immediately,” Trump told reporters on Friday evening after arriving in Florida. “Let the frontline be the dividing line, wherever it is, otherwise it will become very complicated and may never be resolved.”
“They stop at the current battle line, and each side goes back to their country and their family, and the killing stops,” he added, noting he had “said that to President Zelenskyy and to President Putin.”
In an earlier post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: “I told him, and as I also strongly stated to President Putin, that it is time to STOP THE KILLING AND MAKE A DEAL! Enough blood has been shed.”
Disappointment for Ukraine
The outcome was a setback for Zelenskyy, who has been seeking to capitalise on the momentum from Trump’s success in brokering a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Instead, the US president again dismissed calls from critics who argue Putin has no real intention of negotiating.
Trump also appeared to back away from a Senate plan to impose significant financial pressure on Russia through massive tariffs on countries buying its oil, saying on Thursday that the “timing is not right” for such a move.
The developments have put Zelenskyy and his European allies back in a familiar position of trying to push Trump to take a tougher stance on Putin. Earlier this year, Trump cut most US military aid to Ukraine and proposed a plan for Europe to purchase American weapons to supply to Kyiv.
Trump is now preparing to meet Putin in Budapest in the coming weeks, less than three months after their last meeting at a US military base in Alaska.
During their White House meeting, Zelenskyy, seated opposite Trump, expressed his belief that Putin “does not want peace” and repeated his request for a US security guarantee—a demand Trump has so far rejected.
“A lot of people have tried to play me my whole life, and I’ve always come out on top,” Trump said, dismissing concerns that Putin was trying to manipulate him. “I think I’m very good at this kind of thing, and I believe he wants to make a deal.”
Speaking to reporters later, Zelenskyy said the issue of US support was still under discussion. “This file has not been cancelled, and we must continue to work on it,” he said, describing his talks with Trump as “long and productive” but anticipating difficult negotiations with Putin over territory and ceasefire arrangements.
Budapest summit and Bering Strait tunnel
The choice of Budapest for the upcoming Trump-Putin summit has drawn scrutiny. The city was the site of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine gave up its nuclear arsenal in exchange for a Russian pledge to respect its territorial integrity—a commitment Moscow violated with its invasions in 2014 and 2022. When asked by the Huffington Post why Budapest was chosen, White House spokespeople responded with crude remarks.
Separately on Friday, Trump reacted to a Russian proposal for Elon Musk’s Boring Company to build a “Putin-Trump tunnel” under the Bering Strait connecting Russia and Alaska, an idea he called “interesting.” The proposal was floated by Kirill Dmitriev, a special envoy for Putin, who suggested the 70-mile tunnel could be built for around $8 billion.
“A tunnel from Russia to Alaska? This is the first I’m hearing of it,” Trump said during his meeting with Zelenskyy. “It’s an interesting idea, we have to think about it.”
Zelenskyy, when asked for his opinion, expressed his displeasure, saying, “I’m not happy.”
