(18 Aug 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kyiv, Ukraine – 18 August 2025
1. SOUNDBITE (English) Samya Kullab, The Associated Press:
"Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is in Washington today, backed by an impressive group of European political heavy hitters for a meeting that could direct the future of peace talks to end the war in Ukraine. Now, make no mistake this is going to be a tough meeting that’s likely why Zelensky has called on his closest allies to support him. He comes with multiple objectives that together seek to steer the course of talks away from conditions that benefit Russian leader Vladimir Putin to those that are more acceptable for Ukraine. Zelensky will be looking for clarity over security guarantees that America and Europe are able to offer him. On the table are NATO-like guarantees for the moment but the details are vague, especially the role that the US is willing to play to sustain them. Zelensky will have to employ diplomatic tact to avoid pressure into accepting Putin’s maximalist demand for the Donbas, a demand that he simply cannot accept because it runs counter to his country’s laws but also because he believes that it will only serve as a springboard for a future Russian invasion. Instead, he’s likely to push for a trilateral meeting. Ukrainian officials believe that if Putin is confronted directly with sensitive territorial matters that Zelensky will be able to extract a more acceptable agreement from him. Of course, Ukrainian officials are fearful that Trump will simply blame Zelensky for hampering the peace process and in this case, it will be up to Zelensky to call Putin’s bluff – that is to convince Trump that the Russian leader is not as powerful as he claims to be and that despite Ukraine’s very clear battlefield disadvantages, that this is not a war that is easily won for the Russian leader."
STORYLINE:
U.S. President Donald Trump is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday to discuss how to end Russia’s three-year war in Ukraine.
Months of U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting haven’t made headway, but the stakes have risen since Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. After that summit, Trump abandoned the requirement of reaching a ceasefire in order to hold further talks and aligned with Putin’s position that negotiations should focus on a long-term settlement instead.
The presence of several European leaders at the talks in Washington shows how central the conflict — and any settlement — is to wider security questions on the continent.
They are looking to safeguard Ukraine and Europe more broadly from any further aggression from Moscow — but also are providing a show of support for Zelenskyy after his last visit to the White House led to an angry confrontation. The American and Ukrainian leaders are scheduled to first meet privately, without the Europeans.
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