NATO Ambassador Matthew Whitaker: 'It's possible' Zelensky attends Trump-Putin talks in Alaska
CNN's Dana Bash asked Whitaker on 'State of the Union' if Zelensky would be invited to the Alaska summit to discuss a ceasefire deal.
'I certainly think it's possible,' Whitaker said. 'You know certainly, there can't be a deal that everybody that's involved in it doesn't agree to.'
Trump is set to meet Putin in Alaska on Friday to discuss an end to the 3-year-long Ukraine-Russia war. The White House said there would be talk of land concessions.
'You're looking at territory that's been fought over for three and a half years. A lot of Russians have died, a lot of Ukrainians. So we're looking at that, but we're actually to get some back and some swapping. It's complicated. It's actually — nothing easy. It's very complicated. But we're going to get some back. And we're going to get some switched,' Trump said on Friday.
There has also been some speculation that the White House could invite Zelensky to Alaska.
'The President remains open to a trilateral summit with both leaders. Right now, the White House is planning the bilateral meeting requested by President Putin,' a senior White House official told NewsNation's Libbey Dean on Saturday.
Putin on Saturday also shared a ceasefire proposal with special envoy Steve Witkoff. The deal would be a complete halt in fighting, in exchange for Easter Ukraine, according to the Wall Street Journal.
'Any decisions that are against us, any decisions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time decisions against peace. They will not achieve anything,' Zelensky wrote on X in response.
'These are stillborn decisions. They are unworkable decisions. And we all need real and genuine peace. Peace that people will respect.'
The summit has received mixed reactions, but Whitaker said he believes 'his direct engagement by President Trump is obviously leading us closer to a peace.'
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