President Donald Trump’s latest proposal for peace in Ukraine — including a demand that Kyiv cede land to Russia to end the war, which President Volodymyr Zelensky has ruled out — marks the latest in the U.S. leader’s many shifts on Russia and Ukraine.
After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Trump for a long time avoided directly criticizing Putin, going as far as praising Putin’s moves as “genius” and “savvy” and echoing the Kremlin’s narratives on the start of the war. At campaign rallies, he repeatedly pledged to end the war within 24 hours of becoming president.
Since the start of his second term, Trump’s position has oscillated between condemning Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine, threatening sanctions on Moscow and demanding an immediate ceasefire, and publicly berating President Zelensky and pressuring Ukraine to give up its territory.
While Trump has long cast himself as a peacemaker who wants to end the fighting, his repeated shifts have alarmed Ukraine and its Western allies. Here’s an overview of how Trump’s statements have changed since the start of his second term.
Feb. 18, 2025: Trump claims Ukraine was to blame
After U.S. and Russian officials hold talks on Ukraine in Saudi Arabia without any Ukrainian or NATO officials, Trump angers Ukrainians by falsely claiming that Zelensky was to blame for the Russian invasion and describing him as “a Dictator without Elections.” Those statements echo the Kremlin’s narratives and overlook the fact that widespread displacement and the deployment of many citizens to the front line make voting nearly impossible in Ukraine.
“Today I heard, ‘Oh, we weren’t invited,’” Trump says of the Saudi summit. “Well, you’ve been there for three years. You should have ended it. … You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”
Feb. 28: Trump blasts Zelensky in Oval Office
Trump and Vice President JD Vance berate Zelensky during his visit to the White House. Vance accuses the Ukrainian leader of ingratitude toward the U.S., while Trump tells Zelensky: “You’ve allowed yourself to be in a very bad position. You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards.”
The public dispute had no modern precedent and was particularly striking after generations of U.S. presidents presented staunch opposition to Kremlin aggression around the world. Following the meeting, a senior administration official says a policy review is underway, with large amounts of U.S. equipment at stake.
March 30: Trump says he is ‘angry’ at Putin
Around a month after the Oval Office blowup, Trump says he is “angry” at Putin for questioning Zelensky’s legitimacy and will consider more tariffs on Russian oil if he and the Russian president are unable to end “the bloodshed in Ukraine” and if Trump concludes “it was Russia’s fault.”
The comments are a change from Trump’s softer approach toward Russia during the first two months of his second presidency, and would be among a string of Trump’s criticisms of Russia in the coming months. But in March, while Trump says he is “disappointed” with Putin, he adds: “I don’t think he’s going to go back on his word.”
Trump also criticizes Zelensky, accusing him of trying to back out of a rare metals deal with the U.S.
April 26: Trump meets Zelensky at the Vatican
Trump holds a private meeting with Zelensky at the Vatican, where the two leaders are attending Pope Francis’s funeral. Zelensky describes the one-on-one encounter, their first since Zelensky’s White House visit, as a “very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results.”
Trump, meanwhile, takes to social media to criticize Russian attacks on Ukraine, saying of Putin: “Maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war … and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’” He adds: “Too many people are dying!!!”
April 30: U.S. and Ukraine sign minerals deal
Washington signs a contentious minerals agreement with Kyiv, which falls short of providing any concrete security guarantees to Ukraine but affirms a “long-term strategic alignment” between the two countries and U.S. “support for Ukraine’s security, prosperity, reconstruction, and integration into global economic frameworks.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the deal “signals clearly to Russia that the Trump Administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term.”
May 19: Trump speaks with Putin, days before calling him ‘crazy’
In a phone call with Putin, Trump appears to accept Russia’s demand to postpone a ceasefire, opening the way for fighting to continue. But less than a week later, following another massive Russian missile and drone attack against Ukraine, Trump threatens new sanctions against Moscow and says he’s “not happy with what Putin is doing.” Separately, he writes on social media that Putin “has gone absolutely CRAZY!”
July 8: Trump calls Putin promises ‘meaningless’ after meeting with Zelensky
Trump steps up criticism of Putin and reiterates plans to send more weapons to Ukraine, saying, “I’m not happy with Putin, I can tell you that much right now, because he’s killing a lot of people.” He adds, “He is very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
The comments come days after the White House said that the Pentagon had halted deliveries of some key weapons and less than two weeks after meeting with Zelensky at a NATO summit. Trump said of the Ukrainian president, “Couldn’t have been nicer. I think he’d like to see an end to this.”
July 13: Trump pledges more weapons for Ukraine
Trump, in his strongest shift in support of Ukraine during his presidency, says he will help Ukraine obtain advanced weapons including Patriot missiles, paid for by the European Union.
The next day, he threatens tariffs on Russia if the war does not stop within 50 days and says Ukrainians “continue to fight with tremendous courage.”
Although Russian officials downplay the shift, stressing that a lot can happen on the battlefield within 50 days, the move nonetheless sparks anxiety among Russia’s elite, with some fearing that Putin could have missed an opportunity. Trump’s deadline is part of a pattern of behavior for the president, in which he announces a deadline, and that period comes and goes without final action.
Aug. 15: Trump meets with Putin on U.S. soil
On Aug. 8, Trump announces a summit with Putin in Alaska after a series of mixed signals: two days earlier, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin for three hours in Moscow and Trump doubled tariffs on India, following up on his threat to punish countries that buy Russian oil.
Ahead of the Aug. 15 meeting in Alaska, Trump suggests that Ukraine — which was not invited to the summit — may have to cede territory under a peace agreement, describing it as “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both.”
Putin’s supporters and critics see the decision to hold the meeting on U.S. soil as a win for the Russian leader, who receives a red-carpet welcome without agreeing to any concessions. The summit ends without a deal and Trump drops his demand for an immediate ceasefire.
Days after the meeting, Zelensky and Ukraine’s European allies visit the White House on a damage-control mission, in a bid to stop Trump from making concessions to Putin.
Sept. 23: Trump meets Zelensky, then says Ukraine can reclaim all its territory
Trump meets Zelensky on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. That afternoon, Trump sharply escalates his rhetoric toward Russia, saying Ukraine could reclaim the entirety of the territory Russia has invaded with NATO support. Trump also calls Russia a “paper tiger.”
Mid-October: Trump U-turns on Tomahawk missiles
Trump floats the idea of sending long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could hit targets deep inside Russia — a move Moscow strongly opposes.
The U.S. president abruptly changes his position after a phone call with Putin, however. “We don’t want to be giving away things that we need to protect our country,” Trump says.
At the same time, Trump announces another summit with Putin in Budapest — but he cancels the meeting the following week. A day later, the U.S. imposes sanctions on Russian oil companies.
Late November: Trump pressures Ukraine to accept new peace plan
Trump officials present a 28-point peace plan and pressure Kyiv to accept, saying Ukraine is losing land and “will lose in a short period of time.” Zelensky can either agree to the proposal or “continue to fight his little heart out,” Trump says.
Ukraine, European leaders and some U.S. lawmakers are deeply skeptical of the plan — which includes ceding territory to Moscow, reducing the size of the Ukrainian army and barring NATO troops from Ukrainian soil — as being favorable to Russia. There are widespread claims that it may have been drafted by the Kremlin.
U.S., Ukrainian and European officials all work to change the proposal in the ensuing weeks.
Both Zelensky and Putin remain defiant, however. In early December, Putin says that parts of the U.S. plan are unacceptable and that Russia will take Ukrainian land through military force or other means; the following week, Zelensky pledges that Ukraine will not give up any territory.
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