The leaders of the UK, France and Germany will accompany Ukraine's president for crunch talks on ending Russia's war against Ukraine.

The Republican governors of West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio announced Saturday they will send National Guard troops to Washington, DC, in an escalation of President Donald Trump’s efforts to federally take over law enforcement in the city.

The city's Democratic mayor and police chief framed the influx as a plus for public safety, though they said there are few hard measures for what a successful end to the operation might look like.

All eyes will be on the high-stakes meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Monday.

At what was billed as an “historic” presidential summit, hastily put together in Alaska on Friday afternoon, the optics were as clear and overshadowing as the vast Chugach mountains glistening over Anchorage in the summer sun.

The city’s Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit calling for an emergency restraining order to block the move, accusing the Trump Administration of implementing a “hostile takeover” of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) that would lead to “imminent, irreparable harm”.

Over the centuries, changes to the executive mansion’s scale and design have often triggered sensitivity. When Abraham Lincoln learned of the enormous cost overruns his wife, Mary, had incurred for furniture, carpets and drapes, he erupted in fury at what he called “flub dubs for that damned old house!”