President Trump Meets Ukraine's President Zelensky - Topic, Russia

On Friday, President Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House to discuss Russia, Russian President Putin's possible intentions, and American military aid for the embattled Ukraine. This was Zelensky's third visit to the American capital this year.

President Trump, speaking with the media, did make some remarks. Some key excerpts follow.

First, the president recognized what Ukraine (through that nation's president) has endured in this ongoing conflict:

🚨NOW — POTUS says President Zelensky has endured a lot.

"President Zelenskyy of Ukraine has endured a lot...We've endured it with them to be honest, but I think we're making great progress." pic.twitter.com/OPk0PV79a8
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 17, 2025

The president said:

...a man who has been through a lot, and a man whom I've gotten to know very well, we've gotten along really very well, and we had a big call yesterday, as you know, with President Putin, and we'll be talking about it. President Zelensky of Ukraine has endured a lot, I mean, he really has. He's endured a lot, and we've endured it with him. To be honest, it's been a long time, and I think we're making great progress. So we're going to be talking about that today, we'll be talking about what took place yesterday with my phone call with President Putin, and I think that things are coming along pretty well. It began with Alaska, where, I think, certain guidelines were discussed, and we want to see if we can get this done.

We might recall that the optimistic tone struck in the Alaska Summit didn't last long, as Russia promptly launched another round of attacks on Ukraine, within hours of the Alaska meeting's conclusion. Any peace deal ending this destructive conflict will have to be agreed to by Tsar Vladimir I, and he doesn't appear to be too interested.

The president also commented that India, it seems, won't be buying Russian oil, which would put a dent in Russia's bank balance.

🚨BREAKING — POTUS:

"India is not going to be buying Russian oil anymore." pic.twitter.com/CDu7lCYLCG
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 17, 2025

(India) won't be buying Russian oil anymore. And, Hungary is sort of stuck, because they have one pipeline, it's been there for years, and years, and years, and they're inland, they don't have sea, they don't have sea, and I spoke with the very great leader of Hungary, they are... It's very hard for them to get oil. I understand it. We have... Hungary is in a very interesting position because they can't have ports. They're surrounded by land.

If this is true, that puts a crimp in Russia's position - but only a crimp. Russia is still selling gas and oil to the nations of Europe, and has realized €213 billion ($247 billion US) in revenue from European fossil-fuel sales since the invasion of Ukraine began. That's the energy elephant in the room, here.

Next, on ending the Russo-Ukrainian War:

POTUS: "I think we have a chance of ending the war QUICKLY"

"Look, we're not spending money. We're getting paid for the ammunition & missiles & everything else...That's not why we're in this war, we're in it to save thousands of lives every week. That’s why we are in it." 🙏🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/zZVpKfC1bV
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 17, 2025

This time, the president said:

We're discussing that but I'd love to see it (the war) ended before that. I think we have a chance of ending the war quickly. If flexibility is shown, on behalf... And again, we're not losing people. The United States is, we're not losing people, we're not spending money, we're getting paid for the, you know, the ammunition, the missiles, and everything else that we're sending, to the European Union, but to NATO. But it's very similar, if you look at the countries, I mean, it's very similar. And we just made a very fair trade deal with the European Union, and what we wanted - and we made a very good deal with NATO, too. You know, they pay for all of this. That's not what we're in this for. We're in it to save thousands of lives every week. Thousands and thousands of lives. That's why we're in it. And I think we have a very good chance of bringing this war to a conclusion.

Again, all this depends on Vladimir Putin. President Zelensky may want an end to this war. President Trump may want an end to this war. It's not at all clear that President Putin wants an end to this war.

Kremlin Mouthpiece Warns US Sending Tomahawk Missiles to Ukraine May End Badly, Especially for Trump

Talks between the American and Ukrainian leaders are expected to go on through the day. Stay tuned.

Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.

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