Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky began his private meeting with President Donald Trump on Monday by thanking First Lady Melania Trump for sending a personal letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin calling for peace on behalf of Ukrainian and Russian children impacted by the war.
Earlier, Zelensky went on X, saying: "I want to express gratitude to Melania Trump for drawing attention to one of the most sad and challenging problems of this war – Russia's abduction of Ukrainian children. We value her empathy and her letter to Putin extremely. This problem is at the very center of the humanitarian catastrophe of the war – our children, shattered families, the anguish of separation. At least 20,000 children have been abducted. I asked President Trump to pass a letter of gratitude from Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska, to Melania. Melania's voice counts, and her concern lends force to this cause."
Zelensky also emphasized the efforts of Ukraine, saying: "We are working day and night to return every child home. The same goes for our prisoners of war and civilians who have been held in Russia for years – some since 2014 – in very hard conditions. Thousands of people remain to be released, and it is part of the making of peace. We will work towards an agreement on the exchange of prisoners of war in the 'all for all' format, and we are thankful to have good friends who assist."
Melania Trump did not join her husband to last week's meeting with Putin in Anchorage, Alaska. At Monday's sit-down, Zelensky informed Trump that he and his wife, Olena, were "very touched" by Melania's letter, wishing "many thanks to your wife, first lady of the United States," and gave Trump a letter for Melania.
"It's not to you, (it's) to your wife," Zelensky explained, as the US President and the reporters in attendance chuckled.
In her letter dated August 15, Melania penned: "Every child has the same quiet dreams in their heart, whether born by chance into a nation's rural countryside or a brilliant city-centre. They dream of love, possibility, and protection from harm."
Raised and born in communist Yugoslavia, Melania, age 55, emigrated to work as a model in the early 1990s when the nation was sliding into inter-ethnic wars, eventually becoming a citizen of contemporary Slovenia. In the letter, she called on Putin to protect the "innocence" of children torn apart by the war.
She said: "As parents, it is our responsibility to raise the hope of the next generation. As leaders, the role of maintaining our children goes beyond the security of a select few. Unquestionably, we have to work towards coloring a dignity-filled world for everyone — so that every heart can awaken to peace, and so the future itself becomes richly protected."
Melania summed up: "You will be doing more than serving Russia alone — you serve mankind itself. Such a grand conception surpasses all human divide, and you, Mr. Putin, are worthy of bringing this vision into reality with a stroke of a pen today. It is time."
Even after her letter and Trump's threat of "severe consequences" in case Putin didn't go along with a ceasefire, the almost three-hour Anchorage meeting on August 15 concluded without an accord. "There's no deal until there's a deal," Trump replied, disputing Putin's assertion that "an understanding" had been reached. He also characterized the negotiations as "great progress," giving the summit 10 out of 10.
After Monday's one-on-one, Trump and Zelensky spoke with the press, with the US President saying he would call Putin after meeting a larger delegation of European leaders who accompanied Zelensky to the White House.
The envoys consisted of NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The officials took a "family photo" ahead of talks in the East Room addressing Ukraine's security.
Zelensky characterized his encounter with Trump as "productive," with the US President informing the gathering that he planned to arrange a meet between Putin and Zelensky. Yet Trump later clarified his position on a ceasefire, indicating that Putin stood little chance of agreeing to it. In spite of calls from a number of heads of state for negotiations to be suspended until the signing of a ceasefire agreement, Trump insisted that a ceasefire was unlikely and not necessary for the creation of peace.
Read also| Trump Labels Senator Murphy 'Unattractive and Lightweight' Over Alaska Summit Critique
