• President Trump said a trilateral meeting with Putin and Zelensky will happen, but not immediately.
  • The president dismissed prospects for a bilateral summit, insisting peace talks need U.S. involvement.
  • Trump’s comments come as the Ukraine war drags into its third year with staggering casualties.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (TDR) — President Donald Trump on Saturday declared that a trilateral meeting between himself, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky “will happen” — though he suggested the war in Ukraine must drag on “a little longer” before such talks materialize.

Speaking to the Daily Caller, Trump poured cold water on prospects for a bilateral summit between Putin and Zelensky, but insisted that a three-way gathering under his stewardship was inevitable. “A tri would happen. A bi, I don’t know about, but a tri will happen,” Trump said. “But you know, sometimes people aren’t ready for it.”

No Bilateral Path

The president’s comments reflect his ongoing effort to mediate the war, which has become Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War II. While Trump has met separately with both leaders to test terms for peace, only Zelensky has accepted a U.S.-backed cease-fire proposal. Putin has refused concessions and repeatedly rejected direct talks, dismissing Zelensky as illegitimate due to Kyiv’s suspended elections.

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Moscow has suggested that lower-level officials meet first, a tactic Zelensky blasted as a stalling strategy while Russian forces continue daily bombardments with hundreds of drones and missiles. “They want to show the United States they are constructive, but they are not constructive,” Zelensky told reporters. “In my opinion, leaders must urgently be involved to reach agreements.”

Trump’s Playground Analogy

Trump suggested that war fatigue might eventually force compromise, likening the conflict to a playground brawl. “You have a child, and there’s another child in the lot, in the playground, and they hate each other, and they start swinging … and after a little while, they’re very happy to stop,” Trump said. “Sometimes they have to fight for a little bit before you can get them to stop.”

Yet, he acknowledged the toll: “This has been going on for a long time. A lot of people are dead.”

Grim Toll

The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates total casualties have reached 1.4 million since the 2022 invasion. Roughly 250,000 Russian soldiers and 100,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed. In addition, five to seven thousand people — “mostly young,” Trump noted — are dying each week.

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Trump emphasized his desire for resolution but reiterated he will not commit U.S. ground forces as a post-war security guarantee. He did, however, leave open the possibility of American air support for Kyiv after hostilities end.

For now, the war continues, and Trump appears determined to frame himself as the indispensable broker. Whether Putin or Zelensky will accept his trilateral conditions remains uncertain.

Can Trump’s promised trilateral summit deliver peace — or will it become another stage in a war neither side is ready to end?

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