US to help set up protection deal for Ukraine
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump said the United States would help set up a security protection deal for Ukraine which European leaders are seeking.
“When it comes to security, there’s going to be a lot of help … they are the first line of defense, because they’re there—they’re Europe,” the president said as reported by the US Department of Defense (DOD) website.
“We’re going to help them out. We’ll be involved,” the DOD quoted Trump as saying.
Trump spoke after meeting on Monday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a bloc of European leaders at the White House regarding ending the war with Russia.
The session followed Trump’s Aug. 15 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Ironclad
Earlier, European leaders through the European Council stressed that “Ukraine must have ironclad security guarantees to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. We welcome President Trump’s statement that the US is prepared to give security guarantees.”
At the White House meeting, the officials discussed next steps toward leader-level talks to end Russia’s war.
Zelenskyy, speaking in Washington, said Ukraine is ready for “any format of talks at the level of leaders,” while underscoring that Kyiv wants clear signals that the United States will be among the countries helping to provide security guarantees.
The Ukrainian presidency said workstreams on those guarantees are being set up and that teams aim to formalize projects “within 10 days.”
European leaders framed the Washington meetings as a continuation of coordination launched after Trump’s Alaska session with Putin.
‘Lasting peace’
In their joint statement days earlier, the presidents and prime ministers of France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Finland, the European Council, the European Commission and Poland said they welcomed US efforts “to stop the killing in Ukraine” and to pursue a “just and lasting peace,” reiterating support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte’s office and Nato highlighted Allied unity around long-term support for Ukraine, with the secretary general’s White House remarks placing the talks within the alliance’s broader effort to sustain Kyiv’s defense and move toward a settlement that does not reward aggression.
The White House promoted the day’s diplomacy as part of a renewed American push to break a stalemate and “pave a way” toward ending the bloodshed, describing Trump’s convening of Zelenskyy and European leaders as evidence of US leadership.
‘Fateful days’
From Kyiv’s side, officials said the agenda with Trump included front-line conditions, the release of prisoners and abducted children, durable peace efforts, security guarantees and bilateral cooperation.
The Ukrainian presidency’s chronicle of Zelenskyy’s US working visit also recorded coordination meetings with EU and Nato leaders in Brussels ahead of the White House talks.
Germany’s chancellery called the moment “fateful days for Ukraine and Europe,” noting that Chancellor Friedrich Merz joined Zelenskyy and other European leaders in Washington for talks focused on peace efforts with Trump.
Berlin’s readout underscored continued European engagement alongside Washington.
