Susan Heavey and Dan Flynn
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are each scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump next week.
Netanyahu will travel to Washington on Monday and will meet with Trump on Tuesday, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office. Netanyahu will also attend US senator Lindsey Graham’s funeral, his office said.
Zelensky is also scheduled to meet with Trump on Tuesday, a White House official said.
A Ukrainian source said Zelensky was interested in travelling to the United States, but his team was waiting for official confirmation of Trump’s schedule from the White House.
The source added that Ukrainians and US officials had been discussing a proposal for an air ceasefire to take to Russian officials, as part of a new round of peace proposals to try to end the war that began in 2022 with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The source said Ukraine had approached Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past with offers of a ceasefire, which had been turned down. However, some officials believe that pressure on Russia’s economy from ongoing Ukrainian drone and missile strikes may soften Putin’s stance.
Zelensky spoke on Wednesday with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner about the prospects for renewed peace talks with Russia, and said that Ukrainian and US officials could meet in the US in the coming days.
Earlier on Friday, right-wing activist and Trump ally Laura Loomer interviewed Zelensky and said he had told her he would likely be in the US next week for a trip that would include a meeting with Trump.
Loomer, in a post on X, added that Zelensky said he would attend the funeral for Graham, who died earlier this month. A memorial service for the Republican lawmaker will be held on Tuesday in Washington, where Trump will make remarks ahead of a funeral in Graham’s home state of South Carolina on Wednesday.
Graham was a major supporter of Ukraine, travelling there 10 times since the Russian invasion. He pushed for sanctions on Russia as well as US backing for Kyiv.
More to come
Reuters
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