October 20, 2025
By Tobi Akinnubi
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he is willing to join a proposed meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump in Hungary, provided he receives an official invitation.
Trump and Putin recently announced plans to hold a summit in Budapest in the coming weeks as part of efforts by the U.S. president to mediate an end to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, which began with Moscow’s invasion in February 2022.
“If I am invited to Budapest, if it is an invitation in a format where we meet as three, or, as it’s called, shuttle diplomacy, President Trump meets with Putin and President Trump meets with me, then in one format or another, we will agree,” Zelensky told reporters in remarks released on Monday.
The Ukrainian leader, however, expressed reservations about the choice of Hungary as the venue, citing strained relations between Kyiv and Budapest. He noted that Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has maintained close ties with Moscow and has often criticised Western military and financial support for Ukraine.
Zelensky’s comments come amid renewed diplomatic efforts to explore a possible ceasefire and peace settlement after more than three years of conflict that has left tens of thousands dead, displaced millions, and devastated parts of eastern and southern Ukraine.
As of Monday, neither the Kremlin nor Trump’s team had confirmed a specific date for the meeting, while Ukrainian officials said they had not yet received any formal communication regarding Kyiv’s participation.
