European leaders to back Zelenskyy in Washington as Trump presses for Russia-Ukraine deal | World News

US President Donald Trump, who is all set to host Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has been pressing for a peace deal to be finalised, since he concluded a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and now, the European leaders are backing Zelenskyy as he visits Washington on Monday.
Trump, who is pressing Ukraine to accept a quick peace deal and end Europe’s deadliest war in 80 years, has been leaning on Zelenskyy to sign a peace deal instead of seeking a ceasefire since he met Putin in Alaska last week and has been more aligned with Moscow on the issue.
In a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday, Trump promised “Big Update on Russia” without specifying any details about what it might be, though it comes about 24 hours ahead of the scheduled meeting with Zelenskyy in Washington.

Many leaders of #EU states emphasise that a future peace agreement should provide reliable security assurances or guarantees for Ukraine. Russia agrees with that. But it has equal right to expect that Moscow will also get efficient security guarantees. What the West has to…
— Mikhail Ulyanov (@Amb_Ulyanov) August 17, 2025
Detailing about the significance of the peace deal, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told CBS News “If peace is not going to be possible here and this is just going to continue on as a war, people will continue to die the thousands…we may unfortunately wind up there, but we don’t want to wind up there.”
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A Reuters report quoting sources stated that US and Russian leaders have discussed proposals for Moscow to relinquish tiny pockets of the occupied Ukrainian territory, in exchange for Kyiv leaving a fortified land in the eastern region and freezing the front line suo-moto elsewhere in the country.

Among the European leaders accompanying Zelenskyy to the White House are: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Miner Keir Starmer, EU chief von der Leyen and Italian PM Giorgia Meloni.
According to Mikhail Ulyanov, a Russian envoy to international organisations in Vienna, Moscow has agreed that any peace deal on Ukraine must provide security guarantees to Kyiv.
“Many leaders of #EU states emphasize that a future peace agreement should provide reliable security assurances or guarantees for Ukraine. Russia agrees with that. But it has equal right to expect that Moscow will also get efficient security guarantees,” Ulyanov posted on X.