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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday said he and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone about security guarantees for Ukraine, which is in the fourth year of its war with Russia.

Zelenskyy made the comments as he took part in a White House meeting with Trump and European leaders. He said the security guarantees for Ukraine would be essential for his country’s survival and future independence. “The first one is security guarantees. And we are very happy with President [Trump], that all the leaders are here, and security in Ukraine depends on the United States and European countries,” Zelenskyy said. He added that the U.S. is ready to give “good signals,” and this preparedness was “very important.” Zelenskyy, who has met Trump multiple times over the past year, did not provide more details on the potential guarantees.

Trump also highlighted the importance of security, but he went on to say that Europe would have to shoulder most of the burden. He also argued that it is impossible to achieve a negotiated peace without “very tough talk” about swapping territory. “We’re going to help them, and we’re going to make it very secure,” Trump said. “We also need to discuss the possible exchanges of territory, taking into consideration the current line of contact. That means the war zone, the war line center.”

The White House meeting highlighted the disagreements among Western leaders on how to continue supporting Ukraine while also seeking a negotiated end to the conflict. Trump, who has said he wants to end the war through concessions, in the past has also signaled he was open to territorial swaps. Zelenskyy has repeatedly said he would never give up Ukrainian territory and that Ukraine’s sovereignty and international borders must be respected.

Sanctions, Ceasefire Debate, NATO Question

Washington leaders met to discuss the potential guarantees while U.S. lawmakers intensified their calls for sanctions on Russia and its trading partners. U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said that the Trump administration should start taking more drastic measures, such as placing punitive tariffs on all nations still buying Russian oil. He is cosponsoring a bill to this effect that would allow Trump to impose tariffs of up to 500 percent on countries continuing to do business with Russia.

“My advice to President Trump and [Secretary of State Marco Rubio] is, you’ve got to convince Putin that if this war doesn’t end justly and honorably with Ukraine making concessions also, we’re going to destroy the Russian economy,” Graham said in an interview on Fox News. He also claimed that the second-most important figure on Earth for ending the war was Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who he said has an outsized influence over Putin. “The second most important person on the planet to end this war is President Xi in China,” Graham said, before calling on Washington to apply more pressure on Beijing to withdraw its support for Putin’s war effort.

Trump has not shied away from the threat of tariffs. In August, he announced a 50 percent tariff on India in part for the country’s purchase of Russian oil. Graham, for his part, said a similar threat on China would be all it would take to turn the tide.

The European Union is also on track to announce a new package of sanctions against Russia. The 19th tranche of EU sanctions is due to be announced later this month, likely increasing pressure on Moscow by further squeezing its energy revenues, restricting its access to banking, and hitting its military-industrial complex and science sector. It also aims to close off new loopholes that have developed over nearly four years of collective Western action. Today, Russia is by far the most sanctioned country in modern history, with more economic restrictions than Iran, North Korea, or Venezuela.

However, sanctions are not the only sticking point. European leaders also said they need to see a ceasefire to make the peace process a serious one. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the war should be temporarily paused in order to give the peace talks some semblance of credibility. “I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire,” he said. Trump dismissed the idea of a ceasefire, as several of the six peace agreements he said to have brokered in recent months have been reached without one. “You have a ceasefire, and they rebuild and rebuild and rebuild,” Trump said, while acknowledging that a ceasefire’s most appealing quality was the prevention of civilian deaths.

Finland’s President Alexander Stubb, who assumed office in March 2024, was also present at the White House talks. Stubb has been openly skeptical about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s willingness to abide by any ceasefire agreement, and noted that his country has an 800-mile border with Russia. He’s also one of Trump’s closest European interlocutors. “If I look at the silver lining of where we stand right now, we found a solution in 1944, and I’m sure that we’ll be able to find a solution in 2025 to end Russia’s war of aggression,” Stubb said.

In addition to sanctions and a ceasefire, Trump has made clear what his price for peace is. On Truth Social, he asked Ukraine to officially cede Crimea, which Russia seized in 2014, and to give up on its desire to join NATO. “President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,” Trump wrote. He accused the Obama administration of “giving” Crimea to Russia without a fight 12 years ago and said that “NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE” is an absolute red line.