NEW DELHI: Former U.S. President Donald Trump met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the NATO summit on Wednesday, in a high-stakes bilateral engagement focused on Ukraine’s defense needs and mounting tensions over sanctions on Russia.
This marks the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders since Trump’s return to the international stage and comes as Ukraine intensifies its calls for more robust Western military support and tighter economic pressure on Moscow.
Key Agenda: Defense Aid and Oil Sanctions
According to officials familiar with the talks, Zelensky urged the United States to accelerate the delivery of advanced air defense systems, particularly the Patriot missile system, as Ukraine continues to face relentless aerial assaults from Russia. The Ukrainian side also pushed for lowering the G7-led oil price cap on Russian crude exports from $60 to $45 per barrel, a move Kyiv believes could significantly cut Moscow’s war revenues.
Trump, who has been critical of extended military aid in the past, reportedly expressed support in principle for Ukraine’s sovereignty but remained non-committal on new sanctions. Sources suggest he emphasized the need for European allies to share a greater burden in funding and supplying Ukrainian defense.
Tense Optics and Political Significance
The bilateral comes amid a complicated diplomatic backdrop. Trump had skipped several key multilateral meetings during the last G7 summit, and his evolving stance on NATO has unsettled several European partners. Wednesday’s meeting, however, was closely watched as a potential signal of Washington’s continued engagement under a possible Trump-led administration.
European leaders have been keen to ensure that Trump remains aligned with NATO's unified stance against Russian aggression. While Zelensky was not part of the main NATO sessions, his presence in The Hague was intended to reinforce Ukraine’s strategic importance to the alliance.
No Joint Statement Issued
No joint communique was issued immediately after the meeting. A senior Ukrainian official described the discussion as “frank but constructive,” while U.S. aides maintained that Trump was “receptive to Ukraine’s concerns” but stressed “the importance of sustainable burden-sharing.”
What’s Next
Analysts expect further backchannel talks between Washington and Kyiv in the coming weeks. Whether the U.S. will agree to bolster Ukraine’s air defenses or push for revised oil sanctions remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, the broader NATO summit continues to focus on long-term defense commitments, with several allies proposing to increase military spending targets to 5% of GDP by 2035.
