As the Historic Day Dawns, Trump Puts Zelensky on Notice: You Could End War 'Almost Immediately'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected in Washington, D.C. Monday, along with a host of European leaders to back him up. 

As we've reported, a veritable who's who of Continental elites are expected to make their appearance:

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Finnish President Alexander Stubb confirmed Sunday they would attend the meeting in Washington. 

🚨 BREAKING: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has ARRIVED in DC, and is now en route to the President’s Guest House

Big day tomorrow!

President Trump WILL achieve peace — one way or another. pic.twitter.com/VuKUDUKRiD

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) August 18, 2025

But President Donald Trump—fresh off his Alaskan summit with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin—had a message for the Ukrainian president Sunday night in advance of the high-stakes meetings to hopefully end the devastating Russo-Ukrainian war:

President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!

It’s not 100 percent clear what the president means by this message, but it reminds me of a post by RedState’s Bonchie, which I’ve used before because it perfectly encapsulates the feckless response by our leaders in yonder days:

Is there any better example of the empty suit Obama was, and the left's obsession with optics over substance?

Putin took Crimea, and Obama only agreed to send blankets, but he totally owned him in a staring contest. pic.twitter.com/zfT6avCSB5

— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) August 16, 2025

According to many reports, Zelensky will have to give up some territory if he is to see the violence end:

“He’s been told in no uncertain terms by Trump… that he is going to have to accept that the territory that’s been lost is mostly lost for the long term,” Robert English, Director of Central European Studies at the University of Southern California, told CNN’s Polo Sandoval.

English said “any illusions of getting back Crimea and much of the Donbas are over.”

Zelensky, who has now landed in our nation’s capital as of this writing, has issued cautious but also hopeful signals about Monday’s historic meetings. He’s been hardline about giving up any land in the Donbas, but has also hailed possible security guarantees:

With less than 24 hours to go before he meets Donald Trump again, Volodymyr Zelensky has hailed the president's "historic decision" to offer Ukraine security guarantees if a peace deal is reached with Russia.

It's unclear exactly what shape this support might take, but Trump envoy Steve Witkoff today suggested the US and its partners could offer "Article 5 like language" - reflecting Article 5 of the Nato agreement that states an armed attack on one member country would be considered an attack on all members.

Monday could very well be a moment for the history books—in either a good or a very bad way. We of course hope for the former. Keep it here at RedState for what promises to be an interesting day indeed.

Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.

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