Donald Trump has announced that plans are underway for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, though he did not specify when the meeting might occur.
“He wants to meet, and we’re arranging it,” Trump stated during remarks at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
However, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, quoted by Russian news agency Tass, indicated that the U.S. has not yet submitted a formal request for such a meeting.
Donald Trump, who is set to take office on January 20, has pledged to prioritize resolving the ongoing war in Ukraine. He has expressed doubts about the extent of U.S. military and financial aid to Kyiv, signaling a shift in U.S. policy.
“President Putin wants to meet,” Trump reiterated on Thursday. “He’s said it publicly, and we need to put an end to that war. It’s a bloody mess.”
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As part of his administration’s approach to the conflict, Trump has nominated retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, a former national security adviser, as a special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg has outlined strategies for resolving the conflict in a research paper for the America First Policy Institute, a think tank supportive of Trump’s policies.
Kellogg’s proposal suggests that U.S. aid to Ukraine should be conditional on its willingness to engage in peace talks with Moscow. If Russia refuses to participate in negotiations, the paper advocates continuing support for Ukraine.
After Trump’s electoral victory in November, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed optimism, suggesting that Trump’s leadership could expedite an end to the war. Zelensky described a recent phone call with Trump as “constructive” but did not disclose whether any specific demands were made regarding negotiations with Russia.
