Trump insists Ukraine discussions won’t go forward unless ‘Putin and I get together’
(MENAFN) U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that meaningful progress on the Ukraine conflict will only occur if he personally meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This comes as Russian and Ukrainian delegations were scheduled to hold talks in Istanbul on May 15, following Putin’s recent call to restart direct negotiations aimed at a long-term resolution.
Russian officials arrived in Türkiye on Thursday expecting to meet their Ukrainian counterparts. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky later confirmed that Defense Minister Rustem Umerov would lead Ukraine’s delegation, though the discussions were postponed until Friday.
Trump, who previously urged Ukraine to accept Putin’s offer for talks "without delay," told reporters aboard Air Force One that, “Nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together.” He suggested that Putin might have opted not to attend the talks because Trump himself had not confirmed his presence.
“He wasn’t going if I wasn’t there,” Trump said, stressing the urgency of ending the conflict due to the high death toll.
Earlier in the week, Trump floated the idea of participating in the Istanbul negotiations but later downplayed his involvement, citing a packed schedule. However, he added on Thursday morning that he would consider attending on Friday “if it was appropriate.”
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that no plans are in place for a Trump-Putin meeting and reiterated that Putin is not scheduled to travel to Türkiye.
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