Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday that the White House is working to arrange a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss an end to the war in Ukraine. Vance said one of the biggest breakthroughs so far is Putin agreeing to the possibility of sitting down with Zelenskyy — something he had previously refused.
Trump and Putin are meeting on Friday in Alaska, but Vance says the White House is looking to schedule a meeting that would also include Zelenskyy.
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Speaking on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” Vance said U.S. officials are exploring “scheduling and things like that” to determine when the three leaders could meet.
Land swapping
Trump is already scheduled to meet with Putin on Friday in Alaska, without Ukrainian participation unless a last-minute arrangement is made. The president has floated the idea of “land swaps” as part of a potential peace deal — an idea Kyiv has firmly rejected.
“We’re going to get some back, and we’re going to get some switched,” he said during an event at the White House Friday, referring to land. “There’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both.”
Zelenskyy responded on social media, saying “Ukraine will not give Russia any awards for what it has done” and “Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.” He said that any deal made without Ukraine’s direct involvement is “a decision against peace.”
Putin put to the test
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte called Friday’s summit a “test” of Putin’s seriousness about ending the war. Matthew Whitaker, U.S. ambassador to NATO, told CNN that there is still time for Zelenskyy to be invited to the Alaska talks, but that decision rests with Trump.
“Obviously, the decision is going to be made by President Trump,” he said. “He agreed to meet with President Putin in Alaska on Friday, and if he thinks that that is the best scenario to invite Zelenskyy, then he’ll do that.”
Vance: ‘America is done’ funding Ukraine’s defense
Vance reiterated the administration’s position that the U.S. will no longer directly fund Ukraine’s war effort, though it supports allowing European allies to purchase American-made weapons for Kyiv.
“We want to stop the killing. But Americans are sick of sending their tax dollars to this particular conflict,” Vance said. Last month, NATO allies agreed to purchase U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems, missiles and ammunition for Ukraine under a deal brokered with the Trump administration.
