Trump after meeting Putin’s envoy: “A big, beautiful deal” on Ukraine and Europe – Kushner outlines five goals for a new security architecture

Donald Trump said on Thursday, November 5, in the Oval Office, that “there will be a deal” on the war in Ukraine, shortly after meeting at the White House with Vladimir Putin’s envoy, Kirill Dmitriev. “It will be a big deal and it will involve more than Ukraine. I could say maybe it involves all of Europe. It will be a big, beautiful deal and everybody will be excited,” he said, as shown in a post by the White House’s Rapid Response 47 account. Later that evening Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner outlined five goals for a new security architecture in Europe, while the first trilateral meeting of the US, Russia and Ukraine since February is scheduled for next week in Abu Dhabi.

A meeting with Dmitriev, no details

Trump did not meet the Ukrainian delegation, which was in Washington the same day. He confirmed the meeting with Dmitriev when a reporter asked him at a separate press conference, but refused to say what they discussed: “I can’t tell you what we discussed.” To reporters in the Oval Office he said: “I think we’ll be very close to settling the Russia–Ukraine issue.” The American president has said many times in the past that a deal is close, while negotiations have intensified in recent weeks.

Melania Trump’s event

Melania Trump gathered representatives of Russia and Ukraine at the White House to mark the success of the Oleshky ceasefire in Kherson. The White House statement says it is the first time in American history that a First Lady has brought representatives of two states at war to Washington. She described her role as an “exclusive mediator” and said the safe removal of nearly 800 people was organised. She handed the representatives personal letters from her to Putin and Zelensky, while the Ukrainians presented her with the Order of Princess Olga, First Class.

Dmitriev attended for the Russian side, together with human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova, and for the Ukrainian side David Arakhamia, head of the parliamentary group of Zelensky’s party, and Dmytro Lubinets, the parliament’s human rights commissioner. Dmitriev thanked the First Lady for her “distinguished humanitarian role” and said Putin personally gave instructions for the operation. Arakhamia asked her to continue and find “new missions” for de-escalation. From Madrid, at the Ibero-American summit, Zelensky said the Oleshky operation proved that “when Putin wants the fighting to stop, it stops”.

Kushner’s five goals

In a post on X, Kushner wrote that Trump advanced on Thursday the discussion with several European leaders on a broader European security architecture. In the same post he says he wants to present the goals guiding the discussions. As a basis he cited the week’s work in Brussels with Ukraine, NATO and European partners. According to Kushner, Europe and Russia have for more than 30 years been unable to agree on a viable security framework.

The five main goals Washington is considering are:

• Permanent consultations on security issues.
• Reliable communication in times of crisis.
• Greater military transparency.
• Mutual measures to reduce the risks of escalation.
• A lasting framework for long-term security and stability in Europe.

Kushner stresses that any arrangement must respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independent decision-making of every state. “Each country will decide for itself on its security and alliances, and no country will have a veto over another’s sovereign choices,” he writes. NATO will retain a central role in Europe’s collective defence and the initiative will rest on existing institutions and commitments. Consultations will continue in the existing format with Ukraine, NATO, the European Union and European partners, while contact with Russia will take place through the peace negotiations.

What Kyiv says about Brussels and Washington

Zelensky said on the evening of Wednesday, November 4 that he spoke for an hour and a half with Witkoff and Kushner and that they are preparing for the trilateral meeting at team level, to take place in less than a week. The same day, in Brussels, a meeting on post-war reconstruction was held, with representatives of Ukraine, the US, the EU, France, Britain, Germany, NATO and the World Bank, followed on Thursday, November 5 by a new meeting on security guarantees.

The Ukrainian president argued that Kyiv’s proposals are clear and have been delivered to the Americans. He also asked for missiles for the Patriot systems and insisted that post-war security guarantees must be “unshakeable”. Of the Brussels meeting he said it must be clear on paper what will happen if Russia restarts the war: who will do what, with what means and when. In an interview he noted that after the new balance of power in the US, the chances of additional American aid may increase.

Next stop: Abu Dhabi

The trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi, announced by Witkoff on Tuesday, November 3, will take place on November 10 and 11. Kushner writes that it will be the first meeting of the three sides since February and that the United States will consult the Europeans on its sidelines. If progress is made, the aim is to move to a broader multilateral format with direct European participation.

“It is difficult, detailed work. There are no easy solutions,” Kushner notes at the end of the post, adding that ideas continue to evolve and that the US welcomes input.