Washington,: U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday urged Ukraine and Russia to “stop where they are” and end the ongoing war, following an extended White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Trump’s comments reflected his growing impatience with the conflict, which has persisted for nine months since he returned to office. In a post on Truth Social after the more than two-hour meeting, Trump wrote, “Enough blood has been shed, with property lines being defined by war and guts. They should stop where they are. Let both claim victory, let history decide!”
Later, upon arriving in Florida for the weekend, Trump reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire, suggesting that both sides accept the current frontlines as new boundaries.
“You go by the battle line wherever it is — otherwise it is too complicated,” he told reporters. “You stop at the battle line, both sides go home to their families, stop the killing — and that should be it.”
The remarks marked another shift in Trump’s stance on the war. In recent weeks, he had shown increasing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin and greater openness to supporting Ukraine’s efforts to reclaim occupied territories. Just last month, after meeting Zelenskyy in New York during the UN General Assembly, Trump expressed confidence that Ukraine could win back all land lost since Russia’s 2022 invasion — a reversal of his earlier insistence that Kyiv would need to cede territory to end the war.
Following Friday’s talks, Zelenskyy said it was time for a ceasefire and negotiations but avoided directly addressing Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine might have to give up land.
“The president is right. We have to stop where we are, and then to speak,” Zelenskyy said when asked about Trump’s post.
Trump’s tone appeared to change after a lengthy phone conversation with Putin on Thursday. He also announced plans to meet the Russian leader in Budapest, Hungary, in the coming weeks.
During Friday’s discussions, Trump signaled reluctance to sell Ukraine long-range Tomahawk missiles — weapons Kyiv believes could be decisive in pressuring Moscow to negotiate. Zelenskyy had proposed a deal in which Ukraine would provide advanced drones to the U.S. in exchange for the missiles.
However, Trump expressed hesitation, saying, “I have an obligation to make sure that we’re completely stocked up as a country, because you never know what’s going to happen in war and peace. We’d much rather have them not need Tomahawks. We’d much rather have the war be over, to be honest.”
In an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, Zelenskyy said Trump had not ruled out the missile sale entirely. “It is good that President Trump did not say no, but for today, did not say yes,” he said, adding, “We need Tomahawks. It is very difficult to operate only with Ukrainian drones.”
Ukraine had hoped to acquire the missiles — which can strike targets up to 1,600 kilometers away — to hit critical Russian infrastructure and strengthen its bargaining position. But after Thursday’s call with Putin, Trump downplayed the likelihood of such a sale.
According to Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, the Russian president warned Trump that supplying Kyiv with Tomahawks “won’t change the situation on the battlefield, but would cause substantial damage to the relationship between our countries.”
Friday’s meeting was the fifth between Trump and Zelenskyy since Trump returned to office in January. The U.S. president said it was “to be determined” whether Zelenskyy would participate in the planned talks in Hungary, suggesting a “double meeting” with both leaders might be the most effective path forward.
“These two leaders do not like each other, and we want to make it comfortable for everybody,” Trump said.
Zelenskyy, meanwhile, maintained that Ukraine’s hostility toward Putin was not personal.
“They attacked us, so they are an enemy for us,” he said. “It’s not about feelings — it’s about survival.”
Trump has long claimed he could end the war quickly, but his peace efforts have struggled to gain traction. His earlier diplomatic push in August — including a summit with Putin in Alaska and talks with Zelenskyy and European allies at the White House — failed to produce progress.
Asked if he feared Putin was “stringing him along,” Trump replied, “I have been played all my life by the best of them, and I came out really well. I think I am pretty good at this stuff.”
