In a hot mic moment Monday, President Donald Trump appeared to be reassuring French President Emmanuel Macron that Russian President Vladimir Putin was serious about making peace in Ukraine.
‘I think he wants to make a deal. I think he wants to make a deal for me,’ Trump whispered to Macron in the White House East Room before their meeting started. ‘Do you understand that? As crazy as it sounds.’
Macron appeared skeptical that Putin was serious about ending the three and a half year conflict that Russia had started.
Trump gathered Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a handful of European leaders at the White House on Monday for a debrief of sorts after his high stakes meeting with Putin on Friday in Anchorage, Alaska.
While Trump said alongside Putin on Friday that they had had an ‘extremely productive meeting,’ Trump was unable to get Putin to agree to a ceasefire, with the Russian leader resistant to stopping the fighting telling reporters that Russia still needed to ‘eliminate the primary roots, the primary causes, of that conflict.’
The European leaders were gathered in Washington to discuss next steps – including security guarantees and getting kidnapped Ukrainian children back.
Trump first met with Zelensky in the Oval Office before leading a discussion in the East Room with the bigger group.
The president invited NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Macron to take part.
Zelensky’s meeting in the Oval Office took on a dramatically different tone than the showdown in late February.
Both Trump and Zelensky were on better behavior.
The Ukrainian leader showed up in a black tie-less suit, which Trump immediately complimented.
‘We love them, we love them,’ Trump told reporters when asked if he had a message for the Ukrainian people.
In February Trump told Zelensky ‘you don’t have the cards,’ pushing him to be more ‘thankful.’
On Monday, Trump didn’t take the bait when asked which side – Ukraine or Russia – had the better cards.
‘Well I don’t want to say that,’ the president answered.
After his meeting with Zelensky, Trump joined the other leaders in the Cross Hall for a ‘family photo.’
The leaders didn’t smile, but Trump couldn’t help commenting on the White House entranceway’s new decor – the ‘fight, fight, fight’ image he had installed where former President Barack Obama’s portrait used to hang.
‘That was not a great day,’ Trump commented, referencing the July 13, 2024 assassination attempt.
Once inside the East Room, Trump was caught whispering with Macron, telling him his hope to get a trilateral meeting, which would be attended by Trump, Zelensky and Putin.
Both Merz and Macron publicly pushed Trump to try and get a ceasefire as negotiations with the Russians continued after Ukrainian civilians continued to be killed over the weekend.
‘Let’s try and put pressure on Russia, because the credibility of this effort, these efforts were are undertaking today, are depending on at least a ceasefire from the beginning of the serious negotiations, from next stop on,’ Merz said.
‘I would like to emphasize this aspect and would like to see a ceasefire from the next meeting, which should be a trilateral meeting, wherever it takes place,’ the German chancellor added.
Trump had previously said he had three locations in mind for a second meeting, floating a return to Alaska as well.
As the press was leaving, Trump got caught on hot mic again.
‘You do this everyday?’ Stubb could be heard saying as reporters were ushered out after yelling questions their way.
‘All the time,’ Trump answered.
Meloni chimed in, ‘But he loves it, he loves it,’ she said, noting how she doesn’t like engaging with her press.