Source: Reuters
Details: During a speech to Republican governors at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump stated that Putin has expressed a desire to meet, and preparations for this meeting are currently underway.
"He wants to meet, and we are preparing for it," Trump said.
Trump did not specify a particular date for the negotiations but confirmed that the meeting is being discussed.
"President Putin wants to meet. He has even stated this publicly, and we need to put an end to this war," Trump added, referring to the war in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has not yet commented on Trump's statement. However, Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated to reporters the day before that if Trump maintains his intention to contact the Russian leader after the inauguration on January 20, this would be welcomed in Moscow.
Background:
- Representatives of elected U.S. President Donald Trump acknowledge in discussions with European partners that they will not be able to quickly end the war in Ukraine but promise to continue supporting the country.
- On the eve of the election, Trump's special representative for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, stated that his goal is to find a solution to the ongoing full-scale war within 100 days of the inauguration of the new president.
- Previously, Keith Kellogg mentioned that he is preparing visits to hear the positions of the parties involved in the full-scale war. It was also reported that he was supposed to visit Kyiv in January, but the visit was postponed.
- Donald Trump had earlier assured that in his efforts to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian war, he would "not leave Ukraine".