Putin wants to end war, US to hold new talks with Ukraine:Trump

AFP/APP

Washington: President Donald Trump said Wednesday he believes Russia’s Vladimir Putin wants to end the Ukraine war despite inconclusive talks in Moscow, as US officials prepared for a follow-up meeting with Kyiv’s top negotiator.

Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner held late-night discussions with Putin in the Kremlin but reached no breakthrough on halting Europe’s worst conflict since World War II.

The Kremlin later said parts of the US plan were unacceptable, even though the proposal includes Ukraine ceding parts of the eastern Donbas region it still holds nearly four years after Russia’s invasion.

“I can tell you that they had a reasonably good meeting with President Putin,” Trump said when asked by an AFP reporter, later describing the talks as “very good.”

Trump added it was too soon to predict the outcome “because it does take two to tango.”

Pressed on whether Witkoff and Kushner sensed any genuine willingness from Putin to halt Russia’s invasion, Trump replied: “He would like to end the war. That was their impression.”

He further claimed that Ukraine “pretty well” supported the US proposal, though he said Kyiv should have accepted it earlier when he held a tense meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in February.

Witkoff and Kushner are now set to meet top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov in Florida on Thursday, two US officials told AFP, to follow up on the Kremlin discussions.

‘Successes of the Russian army’

Despite earlier optimism from Washington, Moscow said the two sides had not reached a compromise and more negotiations were necessary.

The Kremlin said Russia’s recent battlefield gains had strengthened its stance, while Kyiv’s ties to NATO remained a central issue.

Russia’s advance in eastern Ukraine accelerated last month, and Putin has recently stated that Moscow is prepared to continue fighting to seize the remainder of the territory it claims if Kyiv refuses to surrender it.

“The progress and nature of the negotiations were influenced by the successes of the Russian army on the battlefield in recent weeks,” Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, who attended the US-Russia talks, told reporters.

Moscow insisted it was inaccurate to say Putin rejected the plan entirely. It also maintained its commitment to diplomacy, despite Putin’s warning earlier this week that Russia was prepared to confront Europe if necessary.

“We are still ready to meet as many times as is needed to reach a peace settlement,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

‘Opportunity to end the war’

In Kyiv, President Zelensky said a window of opportunity for peace has opened but stressed it must be coupled with international pressure on Moscow.

“The world now clearly feels that there is an opportunity to end the war, and the current activity in negotiations must be supported by pressure on Russia,” Zelensky said in his nightly address.

The new diplomatic push comes as NATO pledges to purchase hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of US weapons for Kyiv. NATO chief Mark Rutte welcomed the ongoing peace efforts but said the alliance must ensure “Ukraine is in the strongest possible position to keep the fight going.”

Russian forces have continued to push forward along the front line against outmatched Ukrainian units. Earlier this week, Moscow claimed to have captured the strategic city of Pokrovsk, although a Ukrainian army unit said urban combat was still underway.

European governments have expressed concern that Washington and Moscow may strike a deal without them, and have spent recent weeks trying to adjust the US plan to avoid forcing Kyiv into capitulation.