Trump Rules Out U.S. Ground Troops in Ukraine, Considers Air Support

President Donald Trump said this week that the United States will not deploy ground forces to Ukraine under any future peace arrangement with Russia, while leaving open the possibility of providing air support. Speaking in a 19 August Fox News interview and reiterating the stance through subsequent statements, Trump stressed that European allies are prepared to station troops in Ukraine and that Washington could "help them with things, probably by air." The clarification follows an extraordinary White House summit in which Trump and leaders from France, Britain, Germany and Italy agreed to draft security guarantees for Kyiv. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that aerial assistance remains "an option," though she offered no specifics on equipment or rules of engagement. Vice President JD Vance reinforced the message in public appearances, saying "the president has been very clear—there are not going to be American boots on the ground in Ukraine." Administration officials argue that limiting the U.S. role to air and logistical support would satisfy domestic concerns over direct involvement while still strengthening Ukraine’s hand in negotiations. Trump is pressing for a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, with Budapest and Istanbul among the venues under discussion. Moscow has signaled continued opposition to any NATO presence in Ukraine, and analysts caution that the war—now in its fourth year and estimated by Western sources to have caused more than one million military casualties—could drag on if no deal is reached.