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US President Donald Trump has said that it might be more effective if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds a direct meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin without his presence. He made this comment while discussing the possibility of a bilateral meeting between the two leaders.
Speaking on The Mark Levin Show, Trump explained, "I had a very successful meeting with President Zelenskyy and now I thought it would be better if they met without me, just to see — I want to see what goes on. You know, they had a hard relationship, very bad, very bad relationship."
He added, "And now we’ll see how they do. And if necessary — and it probably would be — but if necessary, I’ll go and I’ll probably be able to get it closed. I just want to see what happens at the meeting. So they’re in the process of setting it up, and we’re going to see what happens."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later confirmed that preparations for the potential Zelenskyy-Putin meeting are already “underway,” with “many options” being examined by officials.
According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Putin told Trump on Monday that he is ready to meet with Zelenskyy. Rubio called this a significant step, saying on Fox News’ Jesse Watters Primetime:
"But just the fact that Putin is saying, sure, I’ll meet with Zelenskyy – that’s a big deal. I mean, I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room best friends. I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room with a peace deal. But I think the fact that people are now talking to each other, this wasn’t happening for three and a half years. This was a stalemated war of death and destruction."
Rubio further noted that the Trump administration is working on a “give and take” approach to find a resolution. However, the key challenge lies in determining what Russia might be prepared to offer in return for concessions from Ukraine.
Both Switzerland and Austria announced on Tuesday that they are open to hosting Putin if he attends peace talks with Zelenskyy, even though the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant against him.
French President Emmanuel Macron also floated the idea of a peace summit in Europe, saying it could be held in “a neutral country, maybe Switzerland.”
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis clarified that, under certain conditions, Putin would be permitted to enter Switzerland to take part in such talks.
