G7 Leaders Express Cautious Optimism on Ukraine Peace After Trump-Zelenskyy Meeting

At the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, US President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on June 16, 2026, describing their discussion as "very good." Trump stated that "Russia should make a deal" to end the conflict, citing the toll of young lives lost on both sides. His comments sparked cautious optimism among G7 leaders that a diplomatic resolution to Ukraine's five-year conflict might be possible—a marked shift from Trump's previous stance when he told Zelenskyy last year that Ukraine lacked negotiating leverage.

Zelenskyy and his European allies attended the summit hoping to demonstrate that Ukraine's battlefield position had strengthened through deep drone incursions into Russian territory. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz responded positively to Trump's remarks, stating he found Trump "very cooperative" and "listening very attentively," expressing optimism that Americans and Europeans were working together to end the war. Zelenskyy indicated that follow-up discussions would continue, with teams meeting at various levels over the next 24 hours and plans for a separate meeting with Trump.

However, the optimism remained tempered by uncertainty over concrete measures. Trump, who also announced a preliminary deal to end conflict with Iran, provided few specifics on how he would pressure Moscow. Two European diplomats noted that Trump was noncommittal on imposing further US sanctions against Russia, despite European leaders' desire for such action. Trump mentioned that Washington could allow Russian oil waivers to lapse following the interim Iran accord, but did not address broader punitive measures against Moscow. Zelenskyy had previously offered to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the summit, though a Kremlin aide indicated this was not discussed during Trump's call with Putin.