(NewsNation) — Details have emerged about how the White House will engage Monday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders who support efforts to end the Russian invasion.
President Trump and Zelenskyy will have a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office first at 1:15 p.m., followed by a larger meeting at 3 p.m. that includes the European leaders, according to a schedule released by the White House.
Vice President JD Vance is expected to be at the Trump-Zelenskyy bilateral meeting. The last time Zelenskyy was double-teamed by Trump and Vance at the White House, in February, the result was explosive: A diplomatic session about potentially ending the Ukraine war went off the rails, with Vance accusing Zelenskyy of being ungrateful for American support.
The European leaders heading to Washington with Zelenskyy — among them, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz — had sought to prevent another disaster while showing their support for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy was excluded from Friday’s summit in Alaska between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, where the two met privately about conditions that may end the war. Ukraine and its European allies want a say in what peace would look like.
In a notable departure from European allies, Trump backed away from the idea of an urgent ceasefire before a sweeping peace agreement is hammered out. Critics say that gives Russia leave to continue trying to capture Ukrainian territory as the process drags out.
Putin has been reluctant to meet with Zelenskyy, saying the timing is not right.
Late Sunday, in a series of social media posts, Trump said Zelenskyy “can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight.” The president signaled that a condition would be that Ukraine could not be allowed to join NATO.