Trump says he met Putin envoy at White House, but did not meet visiting Ukrainian representatives

The Story

President Donald Trump said he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s envoy at the White House on Thursday, but he said he did not meet with Ukrainian officials who were also visiting.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he would not discuss his conversation with Kirill Dmitriev, though he suggested that “some type of deal is in the works.” He said, “There’s going to be an agreement, it’s going to be a big agreement and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine,” adding that it might include all of Europe.

When asked if he had met with Ukrainian representatives, Trump said he had not.

Both Russian and Ukrainian representatives attended a White House event recognizing first lady Melania Trump’s work brokering a ceasefire in the Ukrainian village of Oleshky. Dmitriev spoke at the event and thanked the first lady for her “distinguished humanitarian role” in securing a six-day truce, saying Putin personally gave instructions as part of the operation and sent his thanks to Melania Trump.

Ukraine’s involvement at the event included remarks from Davyd Arakhamia, head of the parliamentary faction of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s party, and Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets. Arakhamia told the first lady she did an “amazing job” and encouraged her to keep helping the Ukrainian people, who have endured more than four years of war after Russia sent its troops across the border and invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Melania Trump said Thursday that she hoped the Oleshky ceasefire could become more enduring and more widespread, saying, “Let Oleshky be the modest spark that grows into a lasting flame of peace.” She said she had worked with both countries since last year to reunite families separated by the war, helping nearly three dozen children return to relatives.

The ceasefire was signed Oct. 23, and it was later described as being in effect from Oct. 27 to Nov. 1. Ukrainian and Russian negotiators reached an agreement earlier that day for relief to Oleshky in the war-divided region of Kherson in southern Ukraine.

Melania Trump said Thursday that nearly 800 people evacuated Oleshky during the six-day window while supplies were delivered, with hundreds of residents crossing into Ukrainian-held territory in a major evacuation operation.

Zelenskyy said in a speech in Spain on Friday that the Oleshky operation proved “something very simple,” adding that “when Putin wants the fighting to stop, it stops,” and that there was “real silence, no attacks some days,” which he said helped save hundreds of lives.