On June 14, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called US President Donald Trump on his 80th birthday. The conversation lasted at least half an hour. Dmytro Lytvyn, advisor to the head of state on communications, confirmed to journalists that the parties "managed to discuss everything most important — including ideas regarding negotiations."
The greeting became a prelude to the business portion. However, the context of the conversation is more important than its ceremonial occasion.
G7 Format: Joint Session Instead of Bilateral Meeting
The G7 summit will take place in Evian-les-Bains from June 15 to 17. Zelensky is invited to a working session on June 16 dedicated to Ukraine. According to a senior US official who spoke to journalists on condition of anonymity, Trump will participate in this format — but no separate bilateral meeting between Zelensky and Trump at the summit is planned.
Trump, instead, will hold bilateral talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, as well as leaders of Qatar, the UAE, Egypt, and India. The Ukrainian issue remains in the "all together" format — without direct one-on-one dialogue.
"President Trump will participate in a working session with G7 leaders and President Zelensky"
Senior US administration official, Reuters
What Lies Behind the Phrase "Ideas Regarding Negotiations"
The diplomatic week before the summit proved to be eventful. On June 8-9, Zelensky had a phone conversation with Trump's special representatives — Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. According to sources, parameters of potential peace agreements were discussed: questions of territorial integrity and security guarantees. Kyiv did not publicly disclose the official content of that conversation.
Against this backdrop, Lytvyn's formulation — "ideas regarding the negotiation process" — remains intentionally vague. It records the fact of the conversation, but does not reveal either positions, agreements, or the mechanism for their implementation.
What to Expect from Evian
According to French President Emmanuel Macron, Zelensky's participation in the G7 session is critically important for "restoring convergence of positions" in the West — against signs that G7 unity has begun to crack. The main focus of the session, according to Kyiv Post, is agreement on parameters of potential peace negotiations: issues of territorial disputes and sanctions pressure on Moscow.
- The American side confirmed Trump's participation specifically on the Ukrainian topic — this is the first such G7-level meeting since the January 2025 inauguration.
- The previous personal meeting between Zelensky and Trump took place in January 2026 at the Davos Forum.
- Former special envoy Keith Kellogg called it "positive" on June 11 that the negotiation process between Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow is currently suspended — this, according to him, gives Ukraine more room for maneuver.
Notably, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt confirmed at a briefing that bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit are being prepared — but regarding Zelensky she answered evasively: "We are still very actively working on finalizing the schedule."
Declaration or Commitment?
The phone call confirmed that the communication channel between Kyiv and Washington is working. However, none of the sources reported any concrete agreements — neither on weapons, nor on ceasefire, nor on security guarantees. "Ideas regarding negotiations" without a mechanism for implementation — this is for now a diplomatic signal, not a decision.
If on the G7 session on June 16 the parties agree on specific parameters of the negotiation format — with clear conditions for Moscow and verification — one could speak of a real diplomatic shift. If not — Evian will become yet another summit with "the right signals" but without binding consequences.
