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President Donald Trump reportedly plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin as early as next week before participating in three-way talks between Trump, Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Russia had expressed interest in direct talks with Trump, according to an Aug. 6 FOX News report.
“The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the President is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky,” Leavitt said in a statement, the outlet reported. “President Trump wants this brutal war to end.”
On Aug. 6, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Russia. Trump later described the meeting as “highly productive” in a Truth Social post.
Trump added that after the meeting, he had “updated some of our European Allies” and “[e]veryone agrees” the war in Ukraine must end.
Zelenskyy acknowledged the developments in a post on X earlier in the day, writing that he had spoken with Trump after Witkoff’s meeting in Moscow.
The Ukrainian leader reiterated that “the war must end. And it must be done honestly.”
“Ukraine will definitely defend its independence,” Zelenskyy added. “We all need a lasting and reliable peace. Russia must end the war that it itself started.”
He said that European leaders also joined the phone call.
The news follows Trump’s pledges to take a tougher stance on ending the war. According to The Hill, the White House is set to impose new sanctions on Russia Aug. 8. Trump also said Aug. 4 that he would “substantially” raise tariffs on India in response to its continued purchases of Russian oil, CatholicVote reported.
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