President Donald Trump is working to arrange a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which would mark the first direct encounter between the two leaders since Russia invaded Ukraine more than three years ago.
The White House released 72 behind-the-scenes photographs Tuesday documenting Trump’s historic meeting with Putin in Alaska last week, as diplomatic efforts intensified to bring the warring leaders together for direct negotiations.
Chief White House photographer Daniel Torok captured dramatic images from the nearly three-hour bilateral summit at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. The photos show Trump and Putin arriving at the military installation, locked in conversation in hallways, and preparing for their joint press conference.
One of the most striking photographs shows Trump speaking sternly with Putin backstage before their press conference, with his outstretched finger pointed directly at the center of the Russian leader’s chest and only a translator standing between the men.
Another image shows Trump with his hand on Putin’s shoulder as they prepared to go their separate ways after the meeting.
Trump told Fox & Friends Tuesday that he would let Putin and Zelensky meet first before getting involved himself, saying “they haven’t been exactly best friends.”
“I hope President Putin is going to be good, and if he’s not, that’s going to be a rough situation,” Trump said. He noted that he’s hopeful Zelensky will “do what he has to do,” saying he has to “show some flexibility also.”
Budapest, Hungary, is among the locations being considered for the possible meeting between Zelensky and Putin, according to a source with knowledge of the planning. Hungary has “expressed its openness and willingness to host the talks,” as have a handful of other countries, the source said.
The White House hopes to settle on a date and location for the meeting by the end of this week. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Monday that the goal is for the meeting to take place within the next two weeks.
Trump told talk radio host Mark Levin Tuesday that he’s aiming for direct Putin-Zelensky talks because he believes it would be better for the two leaders to start by meeting one-on-one, “just to see” what happens. After that, Trump said he will meet with the Ukrainian and Russian leaders to “get it closed” if necessary, which he noted it “probably will be.”
“I told him that we’re going to set up a meeting with President Zelensky, and you and he will meet, and then after that meeting, if everything works out OK, I’ll meet and we’ll wrap it up,” Trump said. He added that it takes “two to tango,” and that “they have to have somewhat of a relationship, otherwise, we’re just wasting a lot of time.”
The diplomatic push follows Monday’s extraordinary series of meetings at the White House between Trump, Zelensky and European leaders. After those meetings, Trump said he placed a call to Putin to set up the meeting, and Putin “picked it up very happily,” despite the late hour in Russia. Trump called it a “very good call.”
Trump expressed urgency around the timing of the next meeting, suggesting that waiting too long would result in thousands of deaths. In what appeared to be a hot mic moment Monday, Trump told French President Emmanuel Macron that Putin “wants to make a deal for me.”
The president said on Fox that he has been surprised that Zelensky and Putin are “getting along a little bit better than I thought,” adding that “they’re the ones that have to call the shots.”
“We’re going to find out about President Putin in the next couple of weeks, that I can tell you, and we’re going to see where it all goes,” Trump said. “It’s possible that he doesn’t want to make a deal.”
At the White House press briefing, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Putin and Zelensky have “expressed a willingness to sit down with each other,” and that “accommodations for that meeting are underway.”
Zelensky told CBS News shortly after leaving the White House that a date had not been set to meet with Putin. In a post on X Tuesday, Zelensky called the talks in Washington “truly a significant step toward ending the war and ensuring the security of Ukraine and our people.”
“We are already working on the concrete content of the security guarantees,” Zelensky said. “Today, we continue coordination at the level of leaders. There will be discussions, and we are preparing the relevant formats.”
A Russian spokesperson would only say that high-level talks would take place, but would not confirm that Putin would be involved.
Security guarantees for Ukraine emerged as a key issue during Monday’s meetings, with Zelensky calling them a “starting point towards ending the war.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that the United States will work with European and other allies to provide security guarantees for Ukraine after the war, although he did not provide specifics.
Trump said Tuesday that no U.S. troops would be on the ground as part of a security guarantee, but has left the door open to U.S. air support.
There will be some form of security,” Trump said. “It can’t be NATO, because that was a — that’s just not something that would ever, ever happen.”