US President Donald Trump said he was arranging a meeting between his Ukrainian and Russian counterparts after a summit with European leaders.

Ukrainian analysts watching their president’s return to the White House were braced for a “nightmare.” They took cautious encouragement from what they saw instead.

TRUMP: ‘A VERY GOOD, EARLY STEP’: In a post on Truth Social last night, President Donald Trump expressed confidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin would soon sit down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to hash out details of a peace deal that would lead to the end of the three-and-a-half-year war.

European leaders are set to meet to coordinate the next steps on security guarantees for Ukraine after high-level talks in Washington, as diplomatic efforts intensify ahead of a possible trilateral summit involving Kyiv and Moscow.

“Putin mentioned Moscow” during their call on Aug 18, one of the sources told AFP, adding that Mr Zelensky had said “no” in response. A diplomatic source close to the discussions said that European leaders had told Mr Trump that Mr Putin’s proposal “did not seem like a good idea”.

President Donald Trump and others mocked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in March when he showed up at the White House in his customary military-style fatigues. Zelensky apparently got the message.

Donald Trump’s refusal to release the so-called “Epstein Files” earlier this summer marked a rare break between the president and some members of his diehard MAGA base. Now, a new point of contention has emerged: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s “suit.

European leaders are to join the Ukrainian president during a visit that seeks a path to ending the war between Ukraine and Russia.