ISTANBUL 

A Ukrainian delegation discussed with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio preparations for an upcoming meeting between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump in Washington, DC later this week.

Head of Ukraine’s presidential office Andriy Yermak wrote on US social media company X on Wednesday that the meeting included an exchange of views on what a long-term security architecture should look like “not only for Ukraine but for all of Europe.”

“The leadership of the United States and personally President Donald Trump made peace in the Middle East possible. This is the kind of vision the world — and Ukraine in particular — needs today,” Yermak added.

He said the meeting also included a discussion on “steps that could compel Russia to end its war.”

Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko is leading the Ukrainian delegation that arrived in Washington, DC on Monday. National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov, First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhii Kyslytsia, and Ukraine’s Ambassador to the US Olha Stefanishyna also attended the talks.

Zelenskyy said he will meet Trump in Washington, DC on Friday, with air defense and long-range capabilities being the main topics on the agenda.

In an evening video address late Wednesday, Zelenskyy said Kyiv finalized preparations for his meeting with the US president, stressing that the agenda includes both military and economic components that could help bring the Russia-Ukraine war closer to an end.

“(Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s revenues must be reduced, and that will increase global security. And tools like Patriots and Tomahawks can help lay a long-term foundation for peace,” he added.

Earlier this month, Trump, who expressed “disappointment” with Putin on Tuesday for not ending the over three-and-a-half-year war, said he was close to deciding whether to send long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles to Kyiv, which Zelenskyy said he requested from the US president in September.

Putin has voiced concern over the US sending Ukraine Tomahawks, arguing that this would “destroy” US-Russian ties and lead to a “completely new, qualitatively new stage of escalation.”