Enough Bloodshed’: Trump Urges Immediate End to Ukraine War Following Meeting With Zelensky

Former President Donald Trump called for an immediate end to the war in Ukraine after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Emphasizing the need to stop the ongoing bloodshed, Trump said it was time for both sides to pursue peace and restore stability in the region. His remarks mark a notable shift in tone as global pressure mounts for a diplomatic resolution to the prolonged conflict.

‍Trump Calls for Ukraine Ceasefire After White House Meeting With Zelensky, Grants Commutation to George Santos

President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Friday, urging both Kyiv and Moscow to “stop where they are” and bring an end to the ongoing war. In a Truth Social post following the meeting, Trump declared, “Enough blood has been shed, with property lines being defined by war and guts. They should stop where they are. Let both claim victory. Let history decide.”

The meeting came just a day after Trump held a lengthy phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the conflict. Trump later acknowledged that deep animosity between Putin and Zelensky continues to make direct negotiations difficult. “These two leaders do not like each other,” he said. “We want to make it comfortable for everybody.”

Zelensky, while calling for a ceasefire and dialogue, stopped short of endorsing Trump’s immediate call to freeze positions. “The president is right, we have to stop where we are, and then to speak,” he told reporters. “But they attacked us, so they are an enemy for us… It is not about someone just hating someone else. Although, undoubtedly, we hate the enemy. Undoubtedly.”

Trump also signaled he is not yet ready to approve the sale of long-range missile systems that Ukraine says are crucial for its defense. The two leaders met privately for more than two hours with top advisers.

In other developments, Trump announced a surprise commutation for former Republican Congressman George Santos, who was serving more than seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud and identity theft. “I just signed a commutation, releasing George Santos from prison, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote on social media.

Santos, who was convicted of deceiving donors and stealing the identities of 11 people including family members to fund his campaign, had appealed for clemency in an open letter calling his sentence unfair. His defense attorney, Andrew Mancilla, said Friday, “The defense team applauds President Trump for doing the right thing. The sentence was far too long.”

Meanwhile, Wall Street ended the week on a high note, with the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq each climbing 0.5%, marking the best week for the S&P since early August. Markets steadied after Trump said the steep tariffs he previously threatened against Chinese imports were “not sustainable.”

Trump also told Fox News he plans to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping “in a couple of weeks” during an upcoming conference in South Korea a reversal from earlier remarks suggesting such a meeting was unnecessary. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed U.S. and Chinese delegations would meet in Malaysia to prepare for the leaders’ summit.

Tensions between Washington and Beijing had flared last week when China expanded export controls on rare earth materials, prompting Trump to threaten 100% tariffs. Bessent said Friday that “things have de-escalated,” crediting Trump’s relationship with Xi for easing tensions.

Domestically, Trump faced new criticism from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, whose leaders denounced his administration’s effort to reduce the cost of in vitro fertilization. In a joint statement, Bishops Robert Barron, Kevin Rhoades, and Daniel Thomas argued that the move “treats human beings like property” and pushes faith-based institutions “to be complicit in its evils.”

The administration also filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court after a federal judge blocked, for at least two weeks, Trump’s plan to deploy National Guard troops from Illinois and Texas to assist with immigration enforcement escalating tensions with several Democratic governors.

Elsewhere, Trump’s budget chief Russ Vought said the government shutdown had forced the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to pause $11 billion in “lower-priority” infrastructure projects, many in Democratic-led cities, while $18 billion in transportation funding for New York and $7.6 billion in clean energy grants across 16 states were also frozen.

During his meeting with Zelensky, Trump said he would meet Putin in Budapest, Hungary, citing his “good relationship” with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. He defended Hungary’s continued purchases of Russian oil, saying, “They’re inland. It’s very hard for them to get oil. I understand it.”

Zelensky told reporters that the U.S. president “now has a big chance to finish this war.” Trump echoed that sentiment, saying he believed peace was possible if both sides could “claim victory and move forward.”

Despite tensions over weapons sales and differing views on ceasefire terms, both leaders expressed cautious optimism. “President Trump now has momentum,” Zelensky said. “He can stop the war.”

Meanwhile, Trump ended his day by lamenting that he did not win the Nobel Peace Prize this year. “Somebody got it who’s a very nice woman,” he said, before adding, “I don’t care about all that stuff. I just care about saving lives.”

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Source: NDTV‍