Diplomats and aides are moving to arrange a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and former U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of United Nations events scheduled for next week. The encounter, if it takes place, would bring together two of the most prominent figures associated with the conflict between Kyiv and Moscow.
Trump has been urging progress toward a resolution to end Moscow's offensive against Ukraine, pushing for a solution he says could halt the fighting. The former U.S. president's public calls for a negotiated outcome have added another high-profile voice to an already complex international effort to secure a settlement.
The planned engagement comes as reports indicate rising civilian casualties in Ukraine, underscoring the humanitarian toll of the conflict. International actors at the United Nations and beyond have repeatedly expressed concern about the impact of continued hostilities on civilian populations.
Observers say a meeting at the United Nations could carry diplomatic significance by focusing attention on options for de-escalation and by testing whether leaders can find common ground. Officials involved in arranging the contact have framed it as part of broader diplomatic activity around next week's UN sessions.
No formal agenda for the meeting has been made public, and it is unclear what, if any, concrete steps would follow from the leaders' discussions. Any outcome would depend on subsequent negotiations among the parties and the wider international community.