Donald Trump has repeatedly set – and missed – deadlines to end the war in Ukraine since the early days of his presidential campaign in 2023.
In May of that year, he vowed to end the war “in 24 hours” if he was elected as US president in the November 2024 US presidential election.
But with two days of peace talks led by the US ending with no resolution last week, there is still no real end in sight.
An embattled Volodymyr Zelensky said the talks were “genuinely constructive” as he continued to push for lasting security guarantees from the US and Europe after any peace deal is achieved.
Zelensky revealed on Saturday that Trump has his sights set on a new summer deadline to end the war, but after more than a year of broken promises and tattered deadlines behind him, this may not offer Ukrainians much hope.
Here, The i Paper takes a closer look at five key deadlines Trump has set… and missed.
Trump claimed he would end the war in 24 hours throughout his campaign (Photo: Joe Lamberti/Bloomberg via Getty Images)Deadline one: Within 24 hours after taking office
“Before I even arrive at the Oval Office, shortly after we all together win the presidency, we will have the horrible war between Russia and Ukraine settled,” Trump proudly declared at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July 2023.
“It will be settled. The war is going to be settled. I’ll get them both. I know Zelensky, I know Putin. It’ll be done within 24 hours – you watch.”
The promise was a key mantra that frequently featured in his campaign speeches in the lead-up to the November 2024 election, with CNN analysis revealing he repeated it 53 times.
He even reiterated the point in front of American troops, telling a National Guard Conference in August 2024: “I’ll get it settled very fast. I don’t want you guys going over there. I don’t want you going over there.”
Deadline two: Within six months of inauguration
Despite vowing to end the war within 24 hours after taking office, Trump held his first phone call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on 12 February 2025, during which the two leaders committed to “start negotiations immediately”.
By March, Trump declared he was “being a little bit sarcastic” when he had claimed he could single-handedly end the conflict in less than one day.
Melania Trump has reportedly influenced Trump’s stance on the conflict behind closed doors (Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)Deadline three: Within two weeks, May 2025
During the spring of 2025, Trump’s public statements on the war and peace negotiations became more and more erratic.
Following his infamous clash with Zelensky in the Oval Office in February, he later came out with statements strongly criticising Russian reticence.
“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying,” he wrote in a Truth Social post on 24 April.
Apparently sick of the two nations’ ability to find common ground, by 28 May he issued Putin a two-week ultimatum.
When asked by reporters if the Russian leader was serious about ending the war, Trump replied: “Within two weeks. We’re gonna find out whether or not [Putin is] tapping us along or not. And if he is, we’ll respond a little bit differently.”
Deadline four: 50 days (or less), July 2025
After his spring deadline failed to materialise, Trump reiterated his wish for the end of the war in July, ramping up his threats against Russia.
On 14 July, he claimed that Putin was “all talk”, and threatened imposing “very severe” secondary tariffs on Russian oil.
Trump updated his deadline during a meeting with Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte (Photo: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)This would mean raising tariffs on other countries which buy Russian oil, including China.
On the same day, he told reporters his pressure on Russia was being influenced by his wife Melania.
“I go home, I tell the first lady, ‘You know, I spoke to Vladimir today. We had a wonderful conversation.’ And she said, ‘Oh really? Another city was just hit’,” Trump said during a meeting with Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte.
Trump experienced another bout of resolve a fortnight later, coming out on 28 July to declare he was bringing the deadline forward to 10-12 days.
On a visit to Scotland, he said there was “no reason” to wait any longer, expressing increasing frustration with the stalemate.
“I say, forget it. I’m not gonna talk anymore. This has happened on too many occasions and I don’t like it,” he said.
Zelensky welcomed this “clear stance and expressed determination” from Trump, although like the other deadlines, this too failed to bring results.
Deadline five: Before the end of February’s peace talks
During the autumn and winter of 2025, the US led peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia.
Two days of trilateral peace talks in Abu Dhabi came to a close with positive noises from negotiators but no deal.
Russia renewed its strikes on Ukraine, despite peace talks in Abu Dhabi (Photo: Contributor/Getty Images)The talks ended on Saturday, with Russian media reporting that Moscow remains open to a dialogue and sources telling the BBC that some progress was made but key territorial issues remain.
But it comes as Russia launched a wave of strikes on Ukraine’s two largest cities in the early hours of Saturday morning, killing at least one person and wounding 31 others.
Officials said the strikes left at least 1.2 million people without power amid sub-zero temperatures.
Ukraine foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha condemned Russia’s attack, saying the “barbaric” overnight assault proved “that Putin’s place is not at the board of peace, but at the dock of the special tribunal”.
He added the “brutal” attack had “hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table”.
What next?
It is thought that the US has invited negotiators to reconvene in Miami next week, as reported by Reuters.
“The Americans are proposing that the parties end the war before the start of this summer, and will likely pressure the parties to adhere to this schedule,” Zelensky told reporters after the end of the peace talks.
He said the US had given the impression they wanted a resolution by June, in order not to interfere too much with impending midterm elections in November.
But with Trump having made so many empty promises in the past, and Ukrainians continuing to bear the brunt of Russian attacks, many will regard this pledge with cynicism.
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