President Donald Trump is talking and even strategizing with European leaders ahead of his Friday summit with Vladimir Putin — a shift from his usual go-it-alone approach. Ukraine’s allies aren’t sure they’re ready to trust the conversations.
They’ll get their latest chance to persuade Trump to go tough on the Russian president on Wednesday, in a call arranged by Germany to coordinate between Washington and its European partners.
Trump and his team have repeatedly consulted with Europe on Ukraine since his special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin last week. They also held several calls briefing European officials on Russia’s offer in recent days and convened a meeting of national security advisers in London on Saturday.
European officials have appreciated the Trump administration’s efforts to reach out, the latest sign of his shift toward the continent, but worry about whether there’s an actual openness to their perspective.
“The main thing about tomorrow is whether this is a real discussion, real consultation and whether this will help the president to shape his own approach or whether it's going to be just some nice words and no real consultation,” said a European official, granted anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy.
The increased engagement that has built over months through a number of channels.
The U.S. Ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, has played a key role in encouraging Trump to see the value of the alliance and consider the European point of view, a U.S. official said. Trump spoke warmly of the 32-member alliance during its annual summit in The Hague this year after the group committed to a historic defense spending target of 5 percent of GDP.
On top of that, European officials have made a concerted effort to improve their standing with Trump during his second term, flattering him and leaning into his hobbies and preferences. Some feel they’re finally seeing results from that effort.
Certainly his approach to Ukraine appears to be more measured than it was in the first months of his term when he memorably berated President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about not having “the cards” in an effort to force him to accept a lopsided peace deal.
But the mere fact that Trump is meeting with Putin — and the president’s comments this week explaining his approach — still have many on the continent doubting that all the consultations will amount to anything.
“Everybody is somewhere between worried and outraged,” said a second European official, referring to the meeting and the lingering confusion about what Trump is prepared to agree to. The official was granted anonymity to speak candidly about private conversations in Brussels and among other NATO allies.
Trump’s declaration Monday that a peace deal will require some “land swapping” created new confusion around where the U.S. president stands on the outlines of a potential agreement to end the war — and whether he would back the Kremlin’s latest proposal under which Ukraine would cede land Russia’s military doesn’t currently control, the second European official said.
“This could be exactly the scenario we feared right after Trump took office,” the individual said. “We fear Trump doesn’t recognize Putin’s long-term intentions … [buying] time only to annex more territories later on … a complete breach of international law.”
The White House and the president have worked to temper expectations about the high-profile summit in Anchorage, Putin’s first visit to the U.S. in a decade. Trump told reporters he’s simply aiming to assess the Russian leader’s seriousness about seeking peace, one that if successful could lead to direct talks between Putin and Zelenskyy.
Trump feels that he’s “got to look at this guy across the table. ‘I need to see him face to face’...’I need to make an assessment by looking at him,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a radio interview that aired Tuesday. The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for further comment about its expectations for Wednesday’s call or how Trump will consider European advice.
But White House officials have indicated that they viewed Russia’s latest maximalist proposal as a sign that “shows progress” and that Putin may be serious about negotiating an end to the war. They have emphasized that Putin’s request for a meeting suggests a change.
On Monday, Trump also stated that any land swaps would serve both countries, acknowledging that Ukraine will have to agree to any deal and that he would call Zelenskyy after meeting with Putin. He said he would brief European leaders after that.
Zelenskyy on Tuesday said such land swaps are a non-starter and rejected any suggestion that Ukraine would cede the Donbas as Russia has proposed.
A number of the leaders who will take part in Wednesday’s call have made overtures to Trump that appear to have them in his good graces.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has forged a tight bond with Trump, and won points with him when he visited the White House and delivered a letter from King Charles III inviting him for a second state visit. Finland’s President Alexander Stubb has also emerged as a key Trump interlocutor after golfing with him in March. Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz gifted Trump a gold framed copy of his grandfather’s German birth certificate.
This week, they are likely trying to impress upon Trump their red lines for a peace deal, along with their deep skepticism about taking Putin at his word.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has urged Ukraine to be pragmatic. The U.S. "is asking them to be realistic in their assessment of what they can do with the combat power that they have,” a U.S. official said.
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