Last Friday’s high-profile summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska produced more spectacle than substance in efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war. By Monday, six European leaders had rushed to Washington to gauge the fallout, meeting with Trump at the White House in a historic but similarly inconclusive gathering.
Still, two potentially significant developments emerged: Trump signaled openness to providing US security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a peace deal, and he confirmed “arrangements” were underway for a bilateral summit between Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, to be followed by a three-way meeting.
On Tuesday, Trump softened his pledge, suggesting US commitments might involve “air support” rather than ground troops and stressing that Europe must bear most of the burden. European leaders, meanwhile, are pressing for a ceasefire before any Putin–Zelensky talks, a condition Trump has downplayed.
Despite the lack of breakthroughs, this week’s talks marked a more cordial atmosphere than Zelensky’s acrimonious White House visit in February or Trump’s sometimes fraught ties with European counterparts. Trump relished his role as host, saying in a TV interview: “If I can get to heaven, this will be one of the reasons.”
Yet obstacles abound. Putin continues to press gains on the battlefield and may prefer to delay negotiations. Trump has suspended new sanctions on Russia and insists Putin wants a deal—telling French President Emmanuel Macron in off-mic remarks, “I think he wants to make a deal for me, you understand that?”
Skeptics warn Trump is placing too much faith in Putin, and his own unpredictability looms large. His views on Zelensky have swung wildly in recent months, and his “America First” political base may resist foreign commitments, especially military ones.
For now, Europe’s leaders are betting that flattery can keep Trump engaged. Finnish President Alexander Stubb argued: “In the past two weeks we’ve probably had more progress in ending this war than in the past three and a half years.”
Whether that proves true will depend on the next stage of diplomacy. Trump may aspire to be remembered as a peacemaker, but with fewer immediate stakes than Europe, Russia or Ukraine, he retains the power simply to walk away.
