Russia Confirms Putin-Trump Set To Meet Next Week As Part Of Effort To End Ukraine War

New Delhi: Russia has confirmed that a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump may take place next week, as part of efforts to resolve the ongoing war in Ukraine. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Moscow’s Deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy confirmed the potential meeting, while noting that the exact time and location had not been publicly disclosed.

“As far as I heard, there are a number of locations, but they agreed to something that they don't want to disclose. The timeline is, I think, next week, but that's again judging from what presidents said themselves,” Polyanskiy said as per the reports.

He also addressed speculation about a possible meeting between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, stating that he was unaware of any such plan but did not rule it out.

“I haven't heard about any meeting planned with President Zelenskiy, but I am not in the loop,” he added, according to media reports.

The last meeting between a Russian and US president occurred in June 2021, when Putin met then-President Joe Biden in Geneva. Since then, no summit has been held between the two countries' leaders.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, citing security concerns. However, Kyiv and its Western allies have dismissed those claims, accusing Moscow of pursuing an imperial-style land grab.

President Trump, who had previously vowed to end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office, has yet to fulfill that promise nearly seven months into his second term.

In a related development, the Trump administration recently imposed an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian goods in response to New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil.

Despite this, Trump praised a recent meeting between his envoy, Steve Witkoff, and President Putin, stating that “progress was made.”

The White House also confirmed that Russia had expressed interest in holding talks with Trump, with a meeting potentially taking place as early as next week. The development marks a renewed effort to end the Russia-Ukraine war, now in its fourth year.