President Donald Trump is meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy alongside European leaders at the White House on August 18, 2025, in an effort to broker a peace agreement in the fourth year of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Heads of state from several NATO countries began arriving around noon, including U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte are also participating.
Markets opened slightly lower Monday, with all three major U.S. stock indexes down by low double-digit points after two consecutive weeks of gains.
Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Anchorage, Alaska, last Friday for nearly three hours, but the session ended without a ceasefire agreement that Trump had sought. “There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump said afterward. On Saturday, he wrote on Truth Social that the focus should be on a lasting peace agreement rather than a temporary ceasefire. Secretary of State Marco Rubio added that a ceasefire is “not off the table.”
NATO Secretary-General Rutte was the first European leader to arrive at the White House, appearing at the South Portico shortly after noon. He was followed by other leaders ahead of the scheduled 1:15 p.m. ET meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump. The European delegation is expected to join a pre-meeting lunch at the White House, with some leaders anticipated to make public remarks after the discussions.
Vice President JD Vance, who previously confronted Zelenskyy in February over what he viewed as the Ukrainian president’s ingratitude toward Trump, is also attending the meetings. That earlier visit had devolved into a public dispute, with Vance asking Zelenskyy, “Have you said thank you once?” before the Ukrainian leader left the White House.
French President Macron landed at Dulles Airport at 11:26 a.m. ET and proceeded directly to the White House, joining the coalition of European leaders accompanying Zelenskyy.
CNBC reporters are covering the summit live from multiple bureaus, including Washington, New York, London, Singapore, San Francisco, and Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, providing updates as the discussions unfold.
The talks come as the U.S. administration seeks to align with European partners on a potential resolution, underscoring ongoing international efforts to end the conflict in Ukraine.
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