US President Donald Trump urged Ukraine to give up on hopes of regaining annexed Crimea or joining NATO, as he prepared to host President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European leaders in Washington on Monday to urge Kyiv to accept a peace deal with Russia.

After rolling out the red carpet for Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, Trump urged Ukraine to accept a deal to end Europe's deadliest war in 80 years, which has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions.

Trump will meet first with Zelenskiy and then with the leaders of Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Finland, the European Union, and NATO, the White House said. The European leaders are flying to Washington to show solidarity with Ukraine and urge strong security guarantees in any post-war settlement.

Trump's team stressed on Sunday that there must be compromise on both sides. But Trump has placed the burden on Zelenskiy to end the war Russia started with a full-scale invasion in February 2022. That, along with his comments about NATO and Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014 under Barack Obama, suggests he will press Zelenskiy hard at Monday's meeting.

Zelenskiy "can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants, or he can keep fighting," Trump said on Truth Social. "Remember how it started. There will be no Obama recall of Crimea (12 years ago, without a single shot fired!), and NO ENTRY INTO NATO BY UKRAINE."

Ukraine and its allies have long worried that Trump might push for a deal that benefits Moscow. However, they have been comforted by some developments, including Trump's willingness to provide post-settlement security guarantees for Ukraine.

However, Zelenskiy has virtually rejected Putin's outline proposals from the Alaska meeting, including that Ukraine hand over the remainder of its eastern Donetsk region, a quarter of which it currently controls.

Zelenskiy also sought an immediate ceasefire to allow for deeper peace talks. Trump had previously supported this, but reversed course after the summit with Putin, signaling his support for Russia's preferred approach of negotiating a comprehensive deal while the conflict continues.

Trump will meet first with Zelenskiy at 1:15 p.m. EDT (5:15 p.m. GMT) in the Oval Office and then with all European leaders in the East Room of the White House at 3:00 p.m. EDT (7:00 p.m. GMT), the White House said.

The Ukrainian president, seeking to avoid a repeat of his heated Oval Office meeting with Trump in February, said after arriving in Washington on Sunday evening that he thanked Trump for the invitation.

"We all share the desire to end this war quickly and reliably," Zelenskiy said via the Telegram messaging app. "Russia must end this war—the war it started. And I hope that our joint strength with America and with our European friends will propel Russia toward a true peace."

Russia launched missiles and drones in an overnight attack that included a strike on Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, near the Russian border, that killed seven people, including two children, officials said.

"The strikes hit an ordinary apartment block, many flats, many families live here, small children, children's playgrounds, residential complexes, there are no offices here or anything, we live here peacefully in our homes," said Olena Yakusheva, a local resident, as firefighters battled the blaze in the building and rescue workers dug through the rubble.

On the battlefield, Russia is slowly advancing, capitalizing on its superiority in personnel and firepower. Putin has said he is ready to continue fighting until his military goals are achieved. (alg)

Source: Reuters