Ukraine’s allies say U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed willingness to support security guarantees for Kyiv, a potentially significant but still vague development, just one day before his high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
The pledge came during a virtual meeting on Wednesday with European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, hosted by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump clarified that NATO would not be part of such guarantees, a stance seen as accommodating to Russia, but that the United States and other willing partners could participate.
“This was an important clarification,” Macron told reporters. Merz added that Trump had “confirmed” his support for robust guarantees, marking the first time the U.S. leader has been so explicit on the issue since talks began in March.
European officials called the shift “a big step forward,” though no details have been provided on the form or scope of such assurances.
The Alaska summit, the first U.S.-Russia leaders’ meeting since 2021, comes at a critical juncture in the war, Europe’s largest since World War II, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Zelenskyy and allies are working to ensure no agreement between Trump and Putin undermines Ukraine’s security or territorial integrity.
Russia continues to press its military advantage, with Zelenskyy confirming recent advances of 9–10 km near Dobropillia in Donetsk. Moscow maintains demands that Kyiv withdraw from four occupied regions and abandon its NATO ambitions, conditions Ukraine has rejected as surrender.
Trump has framed Friday’s talks as “setting the table” for follow-up negotiations involving Zelenskyy. While he has warned of “severe consequences” for Putin if peace is not reached, the Kremlin has signaled it will also push for economic cooperation during the summit, with Russian sovereign wealth fund chief Kirill Dmitriev participating.
Western leaders remain cautiously optimistic that Trump’s new stance could lay groundwork for post-war security arrangements, but until specifics emerge, the guarantees remain more promise than plan.
