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Donald Trump held a meeting with Zelenskyy and European leaders and said that he dialled Putin and “began arrangements for a meeting”.
Trump says he brokered a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy (Reuters Image)
In a massive announcement after the White House Summit on Monday, President Donald Trump said that he dialled his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and “began arrangements for a meeting” with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Though he did not name the location where the proposed meeting would take place, the President said that the place is yet to be determined.
Trump wants the Putin-Zelenskyy meeting to take place by the end of August, Axios reported.
Trump Achieves Putin-Zelenskyy Breakthrough
Once the Putin-Zelenskyy bilateral meeting takes place, that will be followed up by a trilateral, in which Trump will also be a participant, he said.
“At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy. After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
He described the latest development as “an early step” to conclude the war that has killed thousands so far.
“Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, are coordinating with Russia and Ukraine,” Trump wrote.
According to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy will take place within the next two weeks.
Later, Zelenskyy signalled he’s open to having a trilateral meeting with Trump and Putin to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Trump’s White House Summit
Trump hosted a Summit with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and other European leaders at the White House on Monday.
Several leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, UK PM Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, visited Washington DC to press Trump over security guarantees for Ukraine and the whole of Europe.
They held a closed-door meeting with the US President.
Several media reports claimed during the meeting that Trump paused the meeting with the leaders to dial Putin. However, Trump said on social media that he spoke with the Russian President after the conclusion of his meetings — something he said earlier in the day he would do.
Russia Reacts To Trump’s Announcements
Putin’s aide Ushakov gave a briefing as Trump met Zelenskyy and European leaders. He confirmed a call between the two leaders and said that Trump briefed Putin on talks with Zelenskyy and other leaders at the White House on the 40-minute call.
Both Trump and Putin backed direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, Ushakov said.
“Putin and Trump called for continuing direct talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations. The two leaders discussed the idea of increasing the level of direct Russia-Ukraine talks,” Putin’s aide said.
Trump and Putin had met in Alaska on August 15, where they discussed the Ukraine war in an over 3-hour-long meeting. At a joint press meet, Putin had proposed Moscow as the venue for the next such meeting.
Ashesh Mallick is a Sub-Editor with over three years of experience in news writing, video production. He primarily covers national news, politics and global affairs. You can follow him on Twitter: @MallickAshes…Read More
Ashesh Mallick is a Sub-Editor with over three years of experience in news writing, video production. He primarily covers national news, politics and global affairs. You can follow him on Twitter: @MallickAshes… Read More
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