Trump steps up pressure on Zelensky ahead of his pivotal White House visit

President Donald Trump is intensifying pressure on Ukraine to accept terms to end its war with Russia — terms that echo some of Moscow’s positions — just two days after meeting President Vladimir Putin.

On Monday, Trump is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky alongside European leaders at the White House, marking the most pivotal moment yet in his push to broker an end to the conflict that began with Russia’s 2022 invasion. The summit is being cast as one of the most consequential days for European security and the Western alliance since the Cold War, and will test both Trump’s intentions and his ability to steer Moscow and Kyiv toward a settlement likely to leave both sides dissatisfied.

The meeting follows Trump’s Friday summit with Putin in Alaska — a gathering that drew sharp criticism abroad after the U.S. president welcomed his Russian counterpart, accused of war crimes, with unusual warmth and offered symbolic concessions in exchange for little in return. Yet Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff insisted on CNN that Russia had softened its stance on Ukraine’s post-war security arrangements and was open to significant territorial exchanges.

European officials, however, told CNN privately that Putin demanded Kyiv cede large swaths of the Donbas — a vital industrial and strategic region that Ukrainian forces have fought bitterly to defend. For Zelensky, such terms are virtually impossible to accept politically, economically, and militarily.

Trump, nevertheless, claimed on social media that “great progress” was being made. But his messaging has alarmed Kyiv and European capitals. On Fox News, he bluntly warned Ukraine to “make a deal,” stressing Russia’s military might. Later, on Truth Social, he suggested Zelensky could end the war “almost immediately” if he chose to, while repeating Moscow’s insistence that Ukraine never join NATO.

These remarks have fueled fears that Trump intends to pressure Zelensky into concessions aligned with Putin’s vision — and that if the Ukrainian leader refuses, Trump might blame Kyiv and withdraw U.S. support.

Monday’s White House talks may therefore hinge on whether Trump emerges as a genuine mediator capable of bringing adversaries to accept painful compromises, or whether his closeness to Putin signals a tilt away from Ukraine and Europe.

“Trump has accomplished one thing in his rush for a deal: he’s shown that it is Putin — not Ukraine or Europe — who refuses to halt the war without demanding more land than he has already stolen,” said Josh Rudolph of the German Marshall Fund. “The real question now is which side America is on.”