Donald Trump hints he’s being “played” by Putin while calling for both sides to “claim victory” in Ukraine
Before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Donald Trump welcomed one of his favorite performers, Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, to the Oval Office. Bocelli performed Time To Say Goodbye—a song about hope and renewal—setting a surprisingly emotional tone before the day’s far more politically charged meeting.
The next item on Trump’s schedule, however, signaled that tensions between him and Zelenskyy have not completely vanished. Despite warmer optics, the two remain deeply divided on a crucial issue: whether Vladimir Putin genuinely wants peace.
During their discussion, Trump reiterated his belief that Putin is serious about ending the war—an assertion that may ring hollow to Ukrainians in the east, still enduring Russia’s intensified assaults. Trump again mentioned “bad blood on both sides,” appearing to equate Zelenskyy, whose country was invaded, with Putin, the aggressor. The fact that Putin alone holds the power to stop the war was largely glossed over.
Zelenskyy, visibly measured, sought to correct Trump’s framing without provoking him. He insisted that Ukraine, not Russia, is the side pushing for a ceasefire, trilateral talks, and ultimately peace.
Relations between the two leaders have certainly thawed since February, when a visibly frustrated Zelenskyy cut a White House meeting short after Trump mocked his casual attire. This time, the Ukrainian president arrived in a sleek black suit and showered Trump with praise—an approach that appears to work better with the mercurial U.S. leader. Zelenskyy lauded Trump’s “achievement in the Middle East” and said he believed Trump “has a chance” to bring peace to Ukraine as well.
Trump, buoyed by recent praise for brokering a Middle East hostage deal, entered the meeting confident. But the war he once claimed he could end in 24 hours is proving much more complicated. His frustration surfaced afterward in a Truth Social post urging both Putin and Zelenskyy to “end the war along its current lines” and to “let both claim victory—let history decide!”
The statement marked a notable shift. Less than a month ago, Trump had suggested Ukraine might be able to reclaim all its territory. As recently as Sunday, he had even floated the idea of sending long-range Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv—plans that now appear shelved, at least until after his upcoming meeting with Putin in Budapest.
When Trump hosted Putin in Alaska in August, he aimed to secure both a ceasefire and a direct meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy. Neither materialized, and Putin has shown no sign of abandoning his maximalist ambitions in Ukraine.
Even by Trump’s own standards, that summit was a disappointment. Yet he continues to take Putin at his word, granting him another phone call before Zelenskyy’s Washington visit and agreeing to meet again soon. The Russian leader has already succeeded in delaying harsher U.S. sanctions and now appears to have influenced Trump’s decision to withhold missile shipments to Ukraine.
Asked by a reporter whether Putin might be manipulating him, Trump admitted it was possible—but added confidently, “I usually come out of these things pretty well.”
Time will tell whether that confidence is justified.