Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been excluded from the upcoming peace talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, as the meeting was arranged solely at Putin’s request.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday that the purpose of this meeting is for President Trump to better understand how to bring an end to the ongoing war in Ukraine, as reported by Fox News. “The president is agreeing to this meeting, at the request of President Putin,” Leavitt said. “And the goal of this meeting for the president is to walk away with a better understanding of how we can end this war.” “I think the president of the United States getting in the room with the president of Russia ,sitting face-to-face rather than speaking over the telephone will give this president the best indication of how to end this war and where this is headed,” she added. However, Zelenskyy has firmly stated that any peace agreements made without Ukraine’s involvement will be ineffective. In a statement on Saturday, he said, “”Any decisions made against us, any decisions made without Ukraine — they are simultaneously decisions against peace. These are dead decisions; they will never work. And what we all need is a real, living peace, one that people will respect.”European allies have also expressed their support for Ukraine. A group of European leaders issued a statement on Saturday affirming that “the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.”On Monday, President Trump said he expected to quickly determine whether Putin was serious about negotiating a deal. He also acknowledged that resolving the conflict might involve some “land swapping” between Russia and Ukraine.Trump said he plans to communicate with Zelenskyy and European leaders after the meeting with Putin. He stated, “If it’s a fair deal, I will reveal it to the European Union leaders and the Nato leaders and also to President Zelenskyy. I may say, ‘lots of luck, keep fighting,’ or I may say we can make a deal.”When asked if the meeting would lead to a peace agreement or simply help gauge if a deal is possible, Leavitt said both outcomes are possible. She explained, “The president has always said he wants a peace deal. He wants to see this war come to an end. But this bilateral meeting is a bilateral meeting between one party in this two party war.”She added that both countries need to agree for a deal to happen. Trump is accepting the bilateral meeting with Putin on Friday and will share his thoughts on the meeting after it concludes.Confirming the meeting between both leaders, White House Press Secretary added that President Trump is looking forward to host Russian president. “There were many sites discussed, but of course, Alaska is a state within the United States of America,” Leavitt said. “So the president is very honored and looks forward to hosting President Putin on American soil.”
