Trump Says Major Ukraine Peace Agreement Could Involve All of Europe

US President Donald Trump said Thursday that a major agreement involving Ukraine and potentially the entire European continent was taking shape following a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy at the White House.

“There’s going to be an agreement, it’s going to be a big agreement and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine,” Trump told reporters, suggesting that the deal could extend to all of Europe.

Trump confirmed that he had met with Putin’s envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, but declined to disclose details of their discussion. The meeting took place as US officials held separate discussions with Ukrainian and European representatives at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

The diplomatic push comes ahead of planned three-way talks in Abu Dhabi next week involving Russia, Ukraine and the United States. The discussions would mark the first trilateral peace negotiations since February.

Trump has repeatedly pledged to end Russia’s war against Ukraine quickly. However, he has recently criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for refusing to make concessions while pursuing closer diplomatic engagement with Moscow.

His administration has also explored arrangements to ease certain sanctions on Russian diesel exports following discussions with Putin during the final weeks of the US midterm election campaign.

Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who participated in the Brussels discussions as part of the US delegation, described Thursday’s meetings with Ukrainian officials, NATO representatives and European allies as productive.

Kushner said the discussions focused on security guarantees for Ukraine and developing a broader security framework for Europe.

“We are working intensively with all parties to find practical solutions that can bring this war to an end and establish the foundations for lasting peace,” he wrote in a social media post.

Melania Trump credited with helping secure local ceasefire

Dmitriev’s White House visit coincided with an event recognizing a six-day ceasefire between Russian and Ukrainian forces in the besieged southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region.

The temporary truce, which lasted from October 27 to November 1, was described as the most significant localized halt in fighting since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Dmitriev thanked US First Lady Melania Trump for her humanitarian role in helping secure the arrangement. He said Putin had personally instructed officials involved in the operation and asked him to convey his appreciation.

Melania Trump expressed hope that the temporary ceasefire could become permanent and eventually be extended to other conflict-affected areas.

“Let Oleshky be the modest spark that grows into a lasting flame of peace,” she said.

The event was attended by Davyd Arakhamia, head of the parliamentary faction of Zelensky’s party, and Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.

Arakhamia praised the first lady’s involvement and encouraged her to continue supporting humanitarian initiatives for Ukrainians affected by the war.

“Definitely we would like to ask you to keep going and to find new missions and to de-escalate more as much as possible,” he said.

Trump said he had not met the visiting Ukrainian representatives and offered no explanation for their exclusion from a direct meeting. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Speaking in Spain last week, Zelensky said the Oleshky ceasefire demonstrated that Putin had the ability to stop the fighting whenever he wanted.

“When Putin wants the fighting to stop, it stops,” Zelensky said, adding that the temporary halt had saved hundreds of lives.

Melania Trump expands her diplomatic and humanitarian role

The Oleshky ceasefire highlights Melania Trump’s increasingly visible involvement in US diplomatic and humanitarian initiatives related to the Ukraine conflict.

Since last year, she has worked with Russian and Ukrainian officials to reunite children separated from their families because of the war, helping nearly three dozen children return to their relatives.

On October 23, the White House announced that she had helped broker the temporary ceasefire in Oleshky to enable humanitarian deliveries and civilian evacuations from the city, which she described as being “on the brink of disaster.”

Melania Trump said she and her senior adviser, Marc Beckman, began working directly with Russian and Ukrainian leaders after learning about the humanitarian emergency during an event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September.

According to the first lady, nearly 800 people were evacuated from Oleshky during the operation.

The ceasefire allowed food and medical supplies to reach residents while hundreds of civilians crossed into Ukrainian-controlled territory.

Humanitarian crisis deepens in Russian-occupied Oleshky

Oleshky, which once had a population of approximately 24,000, is situated along the Dnipro River, opposite territory controlled by Ukrainian forces. Russian troops captured the city on the first day of their full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Prolonged fighting has severely damaged residential buildings and essential infrastructure, leaving residents without reliable electricity, heating or running water. Supplies of food and medicine have also become increasingly scarce.

The humanitarian situation deteriorated further following the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam in June 2023, which triggered devastating floods across the surrounding region. An investigation by The Associated Press concluded that the destruction of the dam was likely caused by a Russian military explosion.

Hundreds of people were killed in the resulting floods.

As winter approached, residents remaining in Oleshky faced growing threats of hunger, disease and deteriorating living conditions. Ukraine had repeatedly called for a localized ceasefire to enable civilians to leave the occupied city safely.

Under international humanitarian law, Russia, as the occupying power, is responsible for ensuring that civilians under its control receive essential supplies and adequate protection.

During Thursday’s White House ceremony, Melania Trump presented representatives of Putin and Zelensky with large white envelopes containing personal letters addressed to the two leaders.

Dmitriev presented the first lady with a painting created by an 11-year-old girl, while Zelensky sent her a Ukrainian award recognizing her contribution to securing the temporary ceasefire.