Donald Trump has said there will be “a big, beautiful agreement” on Ukraine that “might involve all of Europe”. Speaking in the Oval Office, the US president gave no further details of any proposed deal to end the conflict, now in its fifth year.
His remarks followed a rare face-to-face gathering at the White House of representatives from Russia and Ukraine. The event recognised first lady Melania Trump’s role in brokering a six-day ceasefire in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky. Mr Trump said he had met Kirill Dmitriev, an envoy of Russian president Vladimir Putin, but not the Ukrainian officials. He declined to describe the talks, while indicating that the war, triggered by Russia’s 2022 invasion, was close to being settled.
He said: “There’s going to be an agreement. It’s going to be a big agreement, and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine. It’s going to involve more than Ukraine, and I could even say it might involve all of Europe. It’s going to be a big, beautiful agreement, and everyone’s going to be thrilled.”
Mr Trump has been pressing the Kyiv government led by Volodymyr Zelensky to reach a peace deal with Moscow. After crushing electoral defeats in this week’s midterms, in which the Republicans lost control of Congress, he is described as even more likely to seek a settlement he can present as a win. Allies have grown uneasy at Washington’s shift towards Moscow: Mr Trump has waived sanctions against the Kremlin, declined to blame Russia for starting the war and called for Mr Zelensky to be replaced, portraying him as an obstacle to peace.
The UK Government has remained a staunch supporter of Ukraine against Russian aggression. At the recent G20 meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband stressed the need “to secure just and lasting peace in Ukraine”.
Hundreds of British troops and RAF jets are due to take part in a major multinational wargame in Poland aimed at preparing for potential peace in Ukraine. The UK and France will jointly lead Exercise Koalicja, involving 2,800 military personnel from 11 nations, so that Nato forces are ready to provide Ukraine with security guarantees once the conflict is over. Running from November 9 to 22, it will be the first major exercise by the Multinational Force Ukraine, the military arm of the Coalition of the Willing.
At the White House event on Thursday, Slovenian-born Mrs Trump urged both sides to choose “humanity over war” ahead of talks next week. She said: “We must use the courage we brought to Oleshky to find common ground through a shared concern for the suffering of innocent people.” She added: “What matters is not the modesty of this beginning but the determination to turn into something extraordinary.” Both the Russian and Ukrainian delegations presented her with gifts.