Trump dodges question on pressing Ukraine to make territorial concessions
Zelenskyy–Trump meeting, White House, Oct. 17 (Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
Just before his talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Oct. 17, U.S. President Donald Trump declined to say whether Ukraine should cede territory to Russia to secure a potential U.S.-brokered peace deal.
The question came from one of the MAGA-aligned reporters during an impromptu press conference at the White House, minutes after Zelenskyy arrived for a high stakes meeting to discuss potential shipments of Tomahawk cruise missiles.
“In war, you never know,” Trump said.
“War is very interesting. You never know. It’s just war, war and peace—but you never know.”
Responding to similar question addressed to Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader reiterated that specific terms of any peace treaty need to be discussed after a ceasefire.
Several questions about whether the United States is prepared to sell Tomahawks to Europe for subsequent transfer to Ukraine did not get a clear answer. Trump kept saying the matter will be discussed immediately afterwards, praised the capability of the missiles, and noted that his responsibility is to ensure the U.S. arsenals remain “stocked, because you never know what’s going to happen.”
Having spoken with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on Oct. 16, the U.S. president seemingly remains convinced that both Moscow and Kyiv want to end the war, with “a lot of bad blood” between Putin and Zelenskyy being the only obstacle. Trump and Putin now plan to meet in Budapest, Hungary, in the coming weeks, and the U.S. leader specified this will be a bilateral meeting, without Zelenskyy present.
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