Washington (AFP) – Donald Trump could meet as early as next week with Vladimir Putin following what the US president described as “highly productive” talks in Moscow between his special envoy and the Russian leader. The potential summit was discussed in a call between Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky that, according to a senior source in Kyiv, included NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the leaders of Britain, Germany, and Finland.
“The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the president is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. “President Trump wants this brutal war to end.” The New York Times and CNN, citing people familiar with the plan, said Trump plans to sit down with Putin as early as next week, and then wants a three-way meeting with the Russian leader and Zelensky.
The phone call came after US envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian leadership in Moscow earlier in the day for talks described by the Kremlin as “productive” — with Trump’s deadline looming to impose fresh sanctions over Russia’s war in Ukraine. “Great progress was made!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding that afterward he had briefed some European allies. “Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come,” he said.
Minutes later, however, a senior US official said that “secondary sanctions” were still expected to be implemented in two days’ time. Trump, who had boasted he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office, has given Russia until Friday to make progress towards peace or face new penalties. Three rounds of Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul have failed to make headway on a ceasefire, with the two sides far apart in their demands. Russia has escalated drone and missile attacks against its pro-Western neighbour to a record high and accelerated its advance on the ground.
“A quite useful and constructive conversation took place,” Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov told journalists, including AFP, after the three-hour meeting with Witkoff. The two men exchanged “signals” on their positions, Ushakov said, without elaborating. Zelensky confirmed his call with Trump and confirmed European leaders had taken part, although he didn’t name them.
– Sanctions threat –
Trump has voiced increasing frustration with Putin in recent weeks over Russia’s unrelenting offensive. The White House has not officially outlined what action it would take against Russia, but Trump has previously threatened to impose “secondary tariffs” targeting Russia’s key trade partners, such as China and India. On Wednesday, Trump ordered steeper tariffs on Indian goods over New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil. The move would aim to stifle Russian exports but would risk significant international disruption.
Trump said Tuesday he would await the outcome of the Moscow talks before ordering any economic sanctions. “We’re going to see what happens,” he told reporters. “We’ll make that determination at that time.” Without explicitly naming Trump, the Kremlin on Tuesday slammed “threats” to hike tariffs on Russia’s trading partners as “illegitimate.” Russia’s campaign against Ukraine since February 2022 has killed tens of thousands of people, destroyed swathes of the country, and forced millions to flee their homes. Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede more territory and renounce Western support if it wants the fighting to stop. Kyiv is calling for an immediate ceasefire, and Zelensky last week urged his allies to push for “regime change” in Moscow.
– Nuclear rhetoric –
The Witkoff visit came as Moscow-Washington tensions are running high. Trump said he had ordered two nuclear submarines to be moved following an online row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, and that they were now “in the region.” Moscow then said that it was ending a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear-capable intermediate-range missiles, suggesting that it could deploy such weapons in response to what it alleged were similar US deployments within striking distance of Russia.
Ukrainian emergency services reported on Wednesday that at least two people were killed and 12 others wounded in Russian shelling of a holiday camp in the southern Zaporizhzhia region.
© 2024 AFP
