British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pressed President Trump for a more substantial U.S. commitment to protecting Ukraine if the war ends and warned his U.S. counterpart not to reward Russian President Vladimir Putin in any peace deal. Mr. Trump brushed aside those pleas in Oval Office talks and a press conference, insisting that it was now or never to negotiate an end to the brutal war.

Alongside Mr. Starmer at a joint press conference, Mr. Trump said a deal to end the war would “happen fairly quickly or not happen at all.”

“We’re working very hard to get that war brought to an end. I think we’ve made a lot of progress,” Mr. Trump said.

His week of high-level meetings concludes Friday with a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Mr. Trump’s refusal to acquiesce to Mr. Starmer’s requests was a blow to European leaders who visited the White House this week to air their concerns that his aggressive efforts to end Russia’s war on Ukraine would result in conceding too much to Mr. Putin.

French President Emmanuel Macron visited Washington on Monday to deliver the same message. Mr. Zelenskyy’s visit Friday is expected to produce a minerals deal that Mr. Trump contends will give the U.S. access to his country’s precious metals as “payback” for the tens of billions of dollars in military and development aid from Washington since Russia invaded in early 2022.

Mr. Trump will likely adopt the same hard-nosed attitude with Mr. Zelenskyy, who is expected to sign a modified economic development and mineral deal after bluntly rejecting the idea.

Mr. Trump suggested that having U.S. companies inside Ukraine mining critical mineral sites will deter Russia from another invasion. However, some of Ukraine’s most lucrative deposits are in territory occupied by Russian forces.

“I don’t think anyone is going to play around if we’re there with a lot of workers,” Mr. Trump said.

He and Mr. Zelenskyy have escalated their feud in recent weeks. When asked whether he would apologize for calling Mr. Zelenskyy a “dictator,” Mr. Trump sidestepped the question.

“I think we are going to have a very good meeting tomorrow,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Starmer lavished Mr. Trump with gifts and produced a surprise personal invitation from King Charles for a state visit to Britain. Mr. Trump accepted the offer, although no date for the visit was announced.

Mr. Trump will be the first elected politician in modern times to be hosted for two state visits by a British monarch, and he repeatedly played up that point by the visiting prime minister. Queen Elizabeth invited Mr. Trump for a state visit in 2019.

“This is really special. This has never happened before. This is unprecedented, and I think it just symbolizes the relationship between us,” Mr. Starmer said. “So this is really special.”

Mr. Starmer appeared to make headway in shielding Britain from a slate of new tariffs that Mr. Trump is preparing for allies and adversaries. Mr. Trump has vowed to place tariffs on European imports to compensate for what he says are restrictions on U.S. exports.

“We’re going to have a great trade agreement,” Mr. Trump said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other aides are working on a U.S.-British trade and investment accord that could be struck “very shortly.”

The imports and exports of goods and services between Britain and the U.S. totaled $317 billion in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. London is the fifth-largest U.S. trade partner.

Backroom tensions

Despite Mr. Starmer’s efforts to appeal to Mr. Trump, behind-the-scenes talks appeared tense.

Mr. Trump described their discussion as “outstanding” but hinted at some difficulties as Mr. Starmer pressed him on security guarantees for Ukraine.

“You’ve been terrific in our discussions. You’re a very tough negotiator, however. I’m not sure I like that, but that’s OK,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Starmer publicly warned Mr. Trump against accepting any peace deal that rewards Russia. He said it could set off a chain reaction, making Europe less safe and emboldening other U.S. adversaries such as China and Iran.

“We have to get it right. There’s a famous slogan in the United Kingdom from after the Second World War that ‘we have to win the peace,’ and that is what we must do now. Because it can’t be peace that rewards the aggressor or that gives encouragement to dangerous regimes like Iran,” he said.

Perhaps most concerning for Mr. Starmer was Mr. Trump’s dismissal of questions about whether the U.S. would respond with its military might if British troops were attacked in postwar Ukraine.

Mr. Starmer and Mr. Macron have endorsed using troops as a peacekeeping force to provide security guarantees for Ukraine.

Yet Mr. Starmer said he would commit British troops only alongside other European nations and “with the right conditions in place.”

European leaders have argued that using their troops in Ukraine can work only with the support of the more sophisticated American military, an idea that Mr. Trump had dismissed. Although the U.S. won’t commit to boots on the ground, it could provide aerial intelligence, surveillance and support, and a quick response if the truce is breached.

“They don’t need much help. They can take care of themselves very well,” Mr. Trump said. “I’ll always be with the British.”

Mr. Starmer suggested that Mr. Trump won’t provide a military backstop to Europe’s security efforts. When asked whether Mr. Trump had inched any closer, he responded that a peace deal “has to come first.”

Since returning to the White House last month, Mr. Trump has angered U.S. allies in Europe with his overtures to Mr. Putin, hurling insults at Mr. Zelenskyy and insisting that Ukraine repay the U.S. for its financial support.

The Trump administration held peace talks with Russia in Saudi Arabia last week but excluded Ukraine and other European allies. This week, the U.S. refused to vote for resolutions at the United Nations blaming Russia for the war, which has persisted for more than three years.

Mr. Starmer sought to underscore that a peace deal with Russia that doesn’t include Ukraine or European nations could lead to further instability in Europe, which could come back to haunt the U.S.

Mr. Macron raised a similar argument Monday.

The European leaders pledged to do more to protect Ukraine. Mr. Starmer noted that Britain had its “biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the Cold War.” Earlier this week, Mr. Starmer announced that it would raise its military spending from 2.3% of Britain’s gross domestic product to 2.5% by 2027 and then again to 2.6% in 2028.

Despite Mr. Trump’s rosy assessment that a peace deal is nearing, an immediate end does not appear close. Russia continues to bomb Ukraine’s capital. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov threw cold water on the idea of a truce that included European peacekeepers on the ground in Ukraine, and Russian officials rejected the idea that they would give back any of the Ukrainian territory that has been annexed into the Russian state.

• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.

• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.