White House Continues Push for Russia-Ukraine Peace Summit

WASHINGTON - On August 30, 2025, the White House reiterated President Donald Trump’s ongoing efforts to arrange a bilateral peace meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. A senior administration official told AFP that Mr. Trump and his national security team “continue to engage with Russian and Ukrainian officials towards a bilateral meeting to stop the killing and end the war”.

French President Emmanuel Macron had cautioned earlier in the day that if Russia failed to commit to talks by a Monday deadline, it would signal that “President Putin has played President Trump.” Nonetheless, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller dismissed suggestions that the President had been outmaneuvered, calling Macron’s warning “absurd” and asserting that “no president in history has done more to advance the cause of peace”.

Mr. Trump’s diplomacy follows his recent meeting with Mr. Putin in Alaska and a summit at the White House last week hosting Mr. Zelensky alongside European leaders. Despite skepticism from various capitals, the administration remains confident that a face-to-face dialogue could pave the way to ending the conflict in Ukraine.