Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is ready to make “some compromise” on his demand that a ceasefire takes place before any talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin – as long as some security guarantees for Ukraine are established.

Russia’s top diplomat said in an interview released on Friday that “there is no meeting planned” between President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. It was the Kremlin’s most direct declaration yet that a summit the White House suggested was imminent was nowhere close to materializing.

Geneva, Istanbul and Budapest have been put forward as potential locations - but bilateral talks still remain a long way off.

The Ukrainian president’s outfit during his visit to the White House Monday reflects a change in approach since his disastrous meeting with US President Trump earlier this year.

If anyone could convince him to change his look, it would be me,” said Viktor Anisimov, who was working to transform the Ukrainian president’s look even before it was questioned at a White House meeting.

"How can we meet with a person who is pretending to be a leader?" Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told NBC News on Aug. 22.

Analysts weighed in on what concessions Zelensky may consider making to end the war and what's likely to be off the table.

Just after noon, European leaders including Macron, Starmer, von der Leyen, Rutte, and Meloni began arriving one by one at the White House. According to the White House schedule, Trump will first meet with Zelensky at 1:15 p.m. before greeting the European leaders, followed by a multilateral meeting with all parties at 3:00 p.m.

It was not the first time that the vice president had addressed Ukraine’s leader with words more commonly spoken to toddlers than heads of state.

Trump said that his decision relies on developments over the coming fortnight and advocated for talks between Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukraine' Volodymyr Zelensky.