Palm Beach, January 10, 2025 – The Europe Today: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced on Thursday that preparations are underway for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“He wants to meet, and we are setting it up,” Trump stated ahead of a meeting with Republican governors at his Mar-a-Lago golf club in Palm Beach, Florida. While Trump did not disclose the exact date of the proposed meeting, it is expected to follow his inauguration on January 20.
Trump, who has been critical of outgoing President Joe Biden’s extensive military aid to Ukraine, pledged during his campaign to push for renewed negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as the “greatest salesman on earth,” Trump pointed to Zelensky’s persistent calls for Western military and financial assistance.
Though Trump has not outlined a detailed peace plan, media reports suggest that his team is exploring the possibility of freezing the conflict along the existing front lines.
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov commented on Thursday, stating, “We have received no requests for a Trump-Putin meeting. It makes sense, of course, to wait until [Trump] takes office.”
Meanwhile, Keith Kellogg, Trump’s incoming Ukraine envoy, expressed optimism about brokering a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine within 100 days of the new administration. Kellogg also criticized President Biden for not engaging directly with Putin since the onset of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine in 2022.
Negotiations between Moscow and Kiev collapsed in the spring of 2022, with both sides blaming each other for making unreasonable demands. According to Putin, Ukraine had initially agreed to some Russian terms but subsequently abandoned the talks. Former senior U.S. State Department official Victoria Nuland later revealed that Western nations advised Kiev against agreeing to Russia’s proposals during that period.
As tensions persist, Trump’s proposed meeting with Putin is anticipated to serve as a critical step in exploring diplomatic solutions to the ongoing conflict.
