Trump urges Ukraine deal as Europe backs Zelenskiy

Among those making the trip will be French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni along with the leaders of Finland and Sweden.

The European leaders were also meeting with Zelenskiy on Sunday as part of the Coalition of the Willing. 

The show of support comes after Trump said Ukraine should make a deal to end the war with Russia because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not".

After the Alaskan meeting, Trump told Zelenskiy the Russian president had offered to freeze most front lines if Kyiv ceded all of Donetsk, the industrial region that is one of Moscow's main targets, a source familiar with the matter said. 

Zelenskiy rejected the demand, the source said. 

Russia already controls a fifth of Ukraine, including about three-quarters of Donetsk province, which it first entered in 2014.

Trump also said he agreed with Putin that a peace deal should be sought without the prior ceasefire that Ukraine and its European allies had demanded. 

That was a change from his position before the summit, when he said would not be happy unless a ceasefire was agreed on. 

"It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times do not hold up," Trump posted on Truth Social. 

Zelenskiy said Russia's unwillingness to pause the fighting would complicate efforts to forge a lasting peace. 

"We see that Russia rebuffs numerous calls for a ceasefire and has not yet determined when it will stop the killing," he said on social media.

"This complicates the situation.

"If they lack the will to carry out a simple order to stop the strikes, it may take a lot of effort to get Russia to have the will to implement far greater - peaceful coexistence with its neighbours for decades.

"But together we are working for peace and security. Stopping the killing is a key element of stopping the war."

Nevertheless, Zelenskiy said he would meet Trump on Monday. 

That will evoke memories of a meeting in the White House Oval Office in February, where Trump and Vice President JD Vance gave Zelenskiy a brutal public dressing-down. 

Trump said a three-way meeting with Putin and Zelenskiy could follow.

Kyiv's European allies welcomed Trump's efforts but vowed to back Ukraine and tighten sanctions on Russia. 

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has been gradually advancing for months.

The war - the deadliest in Europe for 80 years - has killed or wounded well over a million people from both sides, including thousands of mostly Ukrainian civilians, according to analysts.

At the Alaskan meeting, Putin signalled no movement in Russia's long-held demands, which also include a veto on Kyiv's desired membership in the NATO alliance. 

In a TV interview Trump signalled that he and Putin had discussed land transfers and security guarantees for Ukraine, and had "largely agreed".

"I think we're pretty close to a deal," he said, adding: "Ukraine has to agree to it. Maybe they'll say 'no'."

Asked what he would advise Zelenskiy to do, Trump said: "Gotta make a deal."

"Look, Russia is a very big power, and they're not," he added.

Zelenskiy has consistently said he cannot concede territory without changes to Ukraine's constitution, and Kyiv sees Donetsk's "fortress cities" such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk as a bulwark against further Russian advances.

Zelenskiy has also insisted on security guarantees, to deter Russia from invading again.

For Putin, just sitting down with Trump represented a victory. He had been ostracised by Western leaders since the start of the war, and just a week earlier had faced a threat of new sanctions from Trump.

Trump spoke to European leaders after returning to Washington. Several stressed the need to keep pressure on Russia.