Amid the first few months of President Donald Trump’s second term in office, tensions have risen between the United States (U.S.) and Ukraine over the handling of the Russo-Ukrainian war. The war, which has been ongoing for over three years, and has caused the casualties of a confirmed 41,783 civilians–though the currently unverified numbers are possibly higher–was promised by Trump during his campaign to be swiftly ended, but the path to this end has sparked arguments between him and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. In a rather heated debate Feb. 28, 2025, Trump told Zelensky that he isn’t in the position to be arguing about aid from the U.S. or to be arguing about the situation’s handling, and that he is risking World War Three. This debate, which culminated during a meeting intended for discussion of a mineral deal with Ukraine and additionally regarding the U.S. involvement in aiding the Russo-Ukrainian war efforts, featured both Presidents aggressively talking over one another about their respective positions on the matter. Trump expressed his desire to arrange and execute diplomacy between the warring nations, but Zelensky rebutted this by arguing that diplomacy with Russian President Vladimir Putin was not possible without Putin agreeing to peace negotiations. Trump has stated that the U.S. is in contact with Russia and serious communication is and has been taking place. Most recently, however, Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, who is in cahoots with President Putin, has stated that Russia will never agree to European peacekeepers in Ukraine. This would mean that Russia will not allow troops or personnel from peacekeeping organizations, as currently. Following the confrontation, Zelensky met with the United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who assured him that he had the nation’s full support. Trump has since halted all military aid to Ukraine, and both him and Zelensky have expressed their regret of the way the debate was handled and their continued discussion over a mineral deal between the two countries. President Zelensky has spoken about his complete willingness to participate in peace negotiations with Putin and his desire and readiness for the war to be ended. In more recent news, Trump has scheduled a visit to Saudi Arabia to continue discussions and hopefully rejuvenate peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Trump mentioned that he thinks that collaborating and working with Putin might be more straightforward than with Zelensky. Additionally, with Russia’s most recent missile attacks on Ukraine, Trump threatened thorough and extensive sanctions against Russia unless peace talks were set to happen soon. While continuous efforts and challenges continue to be presented, events will soon begin to unfold regarding the war and will hopefully bring peace to Ukraine.