Trump and Zelenskyy to meet at NATO summit in Ankara

U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday, July 8, on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey. The meeting, confirmed by the White House, is part of renewed diplomatic efforts aimed at ending Russia's war in Ukraine, now in its fifth year.

The leaders are expected to discuss potential pathways to peace, building on separate phone conversations Trump held with Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin over the July 4 weekend. Following his call with Trump, Zelenskyy stated there was a "real prospect" to end the war and that discussions would continue at the summit. The Kremlin said Putin reiterated Moscow's fundamental positions during his call, while Trump reaffirmed his readiness to continue mediation.

Senior U.S. officials described a largely stalled battlefield where neither side is making significant progress, reinforcing the president's sense of urgency to stop the fighting. One official said Trump feels a "real sense of urgency to try to bring this to a stop" and will discuss with Zelenskyy how to achieve that. Trump is expected to follow up with Putin after meeting with the Ukrainian leader.