Zelenskyy seeks security guarantees ahead of crucial White House meeting

"The Russian war machine continues to destroy lives" and "that is why reliable security guarantees are required," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ahead of the meeting with his US counterpart Donald Trump and a number of key EU allies on Monday.

Zelenskyy has already arrived in Washington ahead of his White House meeting Monday afternoon, which many are hopeful will set the tone as Trump continues to seek a quick deal to end Russia's all-out war in Ukraine, now well into its fourth year.

While Trump's Alaska talks on Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin did not produce immediate results, the US president has said that ceasefire talks were pushed aside to focus on finding permanent peace.

However, Russian attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine have continued, and it remains unclear whether Moscow has maintained its maximalist demands, including asking for full control over four Ukrainian regions -- Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson -- and retaining the illegally annexed Crimea.

"At this very moment, the Russians are attacking Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, the Sumy region, and Odesa, destroying residential buildings and our civilian infrastructure," Zelenskyy said in a post on X on Monday.

"Russians are deliberately killing people, particularly children ... Putin will commit demonstrative killings to maintain pressure on Ukraine and Europe, as well as to humiliate diplomatic efforts."

That is precisely why we are seeking assistance to put an end to the killings. That is why reliable security guarantees are required. That is why Russia should not be rewarded for its participation in this war," the Ukrainian leader said.

"The war must be ended. And it is Moscow that must hear the word: “Stop.”

'Remember how it started'

Zelenskyy will be attending the meeting with a slew of other European leaders, joining at the Ukrainian leader’s request in a strong show of unity despite the Trump administration’s attempts to sideline Europe from talks to stop Russia's all-out war on Ukraine.

The list of those expected to be in the room on Monday includes German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will also be in attendance.

In the meantime, Trump's words on his social media platform Truth Social have caused further concerns among Ukraine and its allies that the US president might push for broad concessions in his pursuit of a quick fix to the ongoing war.

In a brief post overnight on Monday, Trump seemingly said that the responsibility of ending Moscow's war is now on Zelenskyy, who, according to the US president, "can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight."

"Remember how it started," Trump added.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the morning after Putin held a long speech outlining ahistorical reasons why the neighbouring country belongs to Russia and blaming NATO, the EU and alleged "Nazis" for the war, all without providing any backing to his claims.

In his post on TruthSocial, Trump also said there is "no getting back Obama-given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired) and no going into NATO by Ukraine," hinting that Moscow continued with its demand that Kyiv can under no circumstances join the security alliance.

When Russia first invaded Ukraine and Moscow soldiers entered Crimea in 2014, Ukraine’s foreign partners were asking Crimean authorities not to "provoke Russia," Chairman of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis Refat Chubarov told Euronews, rejecting Trump’s claims that Ukraine did not fight for it and "handed over to Russia without a shot being fired" instead.

'We will not leave President Zelenskyy alone'

European leaders have repeatedly stated that any territorial concessions lie squarely in the hands of Ukraine and Ukrainians, and that Ukraine must be given significant security guarantees in pursuit of just and lasting peace, as its future remains a key priority for the rest of the continent.

Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Sunday praised the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European leaders planning to accompany Zelenskyy to the White House. 

"This shows, first, that Germany is playing a leading, moderating and unifying role in this conflict, and second, that Germany stands firmly with Ukraine," he said. 

"We will not leave President Zelenskyy alone on this difficult path of upcoming negotiations," Wadephul added. 

The French president was even more vocal in his support of Kyiv, echoing the belief that any territorial concessions in Ukraine might further jeopardise the security of the conflict and could be used as a springboard for the Kremlin's future invasions.

“If we show weakness today in front of Russia, we are laying the ground for future conflicts,” Macron said on Sunday evening.

Zelenskyy’s White House visit on Monday is the first since February’s dramatic showdown in the Oval Office between the Ukrainian leader, Trump and US Vice President JD Vance.

During that meeting, the Ukrainian leader was publicly admonished by Trump and members of his administration for "not being thankful enough" and mocked for "not wearing a suit".

The two then notably met for a sit-down conversation at the Vatican during the funeral service for late Pope Francis on 27 April, in what Zelenskyy said was their "best" exchange yet.

In contrast, Trump treated Putin to a red-carpet welcome together with a bomber-and-fighter jet flyover in Anchorage last Friday, and the two leaders were all smiles at the summit, marking the Russian leader's first trip to the West since the full-scale invasion.