Zelensky asks Trump to join talks with Putin: "All of us in Ukraine would like him to be there with us"
This Monday, after being asked by the press whether he was willing to personally go to the negotiations, the U.S. president stated, "I'd fly there if I thought it would be useful."
Vladimir Putin (l); Donald Trump (c) and Volodymir Zelenski (r) in a file image.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, to join peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to be held in Turkey this week.
“I supported President Trump with the idea of direct talks with Putin. I am ready to meet. I will be in Turkey,” Zelensky wrote on social media. “All of us in Ukraine would like President Trump to be there with us.”
I have just heard President Trump's statement. Very important words.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 12, 2025
I supported @POTUS idea of a full and unconditional ceasefire — long enough to provide the foundation for diplomacy. And we want it, we are ready to uphold silence on our end.
I supported President Trump…
The peace talks in Turkey between Zelenski and Putin are aimed at achieving a lasting ceasefire between the two countries three years after Russia launched the invasion against Ukraine.
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Zelensky's message appears to be another kind of appeal to pressure Putin to reach a truce. In recent weeks, President Trump, in a major shift in stance, has expressed disappointment with Moscow for not pursuing peace as Washington attempts to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.
On Saturday, President Putin rejected Ukraine's latest proposal for a 30-day ceasefire as a precondition for initiating any pre-negotiations between the two countries. Instead, Moscow proposed restarting peace talks.
Putin himself said he was ready to halt the fighting this Thursday to resume negotiations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Right away, Trump urged Ukraine to accept the offer, and on Sunday, Zelensky accepted.
This Monday, after being asked by reporters if he was willing to personally go to the negotiations, Trump said, "I'd fly there if I thought it would be helpful.”
Although experts consider that peace still looks a long way off, it is a big step that Putin, who in his public interventions barely mentions Zelensky and does not recognize his leadership, appears in Turkey to negotiate with the Ukrainian leader. Some see it as a sort of symbolic concession.
After publicly committing to a meeting, Putin also faces the challenge of potential sanctions from Washington should he stand up Zelensky and his delegation in Turkey. Indeed, Trump himself has already threatened severe sanctions for the party that does not agree to a thirty-day ceasefire.
In 2022, after the first days of the invasion, Ukraine and Russia had already met in Turkey to try to reach peace. While the negotiations, which began in February 2022, lasted for months, in June of that year they came to a screeching halt and never made significant progress. In fact, neither Putin nor Zelensky were part of those talks.
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