Trump Pursues Ukraine Peace Deal at NATO Ankara Summit

President Donald Trump is attempting to broker a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine, asserting that a resolution is closer than publicly realized. Following separate phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 4 and 5, Trump stated that both leaders want to end the fighting. He proposed deploying envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow to facilitate mediation.

These diplomatic efforts coincide with a severe escalation in violence. Russia launched massive missile and drone barrages against Kyiv and other regions, killing at least 28 people. Ukraine has responded with long-range drone strikes targeting oil terminals in St. Petersburg and military sites in Crimea. A diplomatic dispute also emerged over the city of Kostyantynivka; Putin claimed the stronghold had been captured, a report Zelenskyy dismissed as a "Russian lie.

At the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, starting July 7, Trump plans to meet Zelenskyy to push for a settlement while urging alliance members to increase defense spending. Zelenskyy is utilizing the summit to request urgent transfers of Patriot air defense missiles and propose a "Drone Deal Initiative" for the joint production of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles. Meanwhile, Trump criticized NATO allies, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy, for failing to support the U.S. during its previous conflict with Iran.