Trump claims to be setting up meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin after talks with European leaders end – live | Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he is ready for a bilateral meeting with Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, Agence France-Presse is reporting.

Vladimir Putin told Donald Trump he was ready to meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy “within the next two weeks”, German chancellor Friedrich Merz has told reporters, as cited by Agence France-Presse.

Finland’s president has said the main agreement from the White House meeting was that the killing has to end.

Alexander Stubb said Donald Trump felt like it was a good idea to call Vladimir Putin and propose a bilateral meeting between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Putin, adding that it remained to be seen if Putin had the courage to come to such a meeting, Reuters is reporting

Putin could not be trusted, Stubb also said.

It was reported earlier that Trump interrupted his White House talks with European leaders to make the call to the Russian president.

Trump also said in his Truth Social post that during today’s Washington talks he and European leaders discussed security guarantees for Ukraine and “which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America”.

Earlier in the day, when asked if future security guarantees for Ukraine could involve American troops, the US president didn’t rule it out.

Trump said:

When it comes to security there’s going to be a lot of help … They’re the first line of defence because they’re there, Europe, but we’re going to help them out also, we’ll be involved.

Six European leaders joined Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the Washington meeting with Donald Trump – here’s what the scenes looked like.

Donald Trump has taken to social media to say arrangements are under way for a future meeting between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin and, later, a trilateral meeting between the two along with Trump.

The US president posted on his Truth Social platform that today’s meeting in Washington was “a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years”.

He said vice-president JD Vance, secretary of state Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff were “coordinating with Russia and Ukraine”.

Trump said:

Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine. At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy. After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself.

Putin has previously resisted a one-on-one meeting with Zelenskyy.

That’s all from me Lucy Campbell for today. My colleague Adam Fulton will be along shortly to steer you through the rest of the day’s news.

The reporter who criticised Volodymyr Zelenskyy for not dressing formally enough during his last meeting with Donald Trump said the Ukrainian president looked ‘fabulous’ in his suit during their latest meeting at the White House – and our video colleagues have clipped the exchange here:

Ukraine’s Air Force said early on Tuesday (local time) that two Russian strategic bombers took off from Russian airfields for a possible attack on Ukraine.

“We will provide additional updates if the situation changes,” the Air Force said on the Telegram messaging app.

A spokesperson for Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told NBC News: “The meeting has ended, but European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are staying for now in DC to continue talks, potentially in another format.”

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen posted an image of the leaders alongside Donald Trump inside the White House with a message of unity and stressing the need for strong security guarantees for Ukraine.

We now have confirmation from the White House that Donald Trump’s talks with European leaders in the east room has concluded.