Trump, Zelenskyy and European leaders met at the White House earlier Monday for hastily assembled multilateral talks, which came after Trump met with Putin on Aug. 15 and shut the other leaders out. European political leaders joined discussions as they pursue means to safeguard Ukraine and the continent from any widening aggression from Moscow.
Trump, who bragged on numerous occasions during the campaign that he could settle Russia's war in Ukraine in a day, said repeatedly Monday that it was far more complicated than he ever thought it would be.
But he also suggested — likely implausibly — that the fighting that has raged for years could wind down quickly.
"A week or two weeks, we'll know whether we're going to solve this, or if this horrible fighting is going to continue," said Trump, even suggesting the issues yet to be hammered out weren't "overly complex."
Still, much remains unresolved, including red lines that are incompatible — like whether Ukraine will cede any land to Russia, the future of Ukraine's army and whether the country will ultimately have lasting and meaningful security guarantees.