In a diplomatic move, US President Donald Trump interrupted a crucial meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and some key European leaders at the White House to have a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as per media reports.
President Donald J. Trump on the phone with President Putin in the Oval Office. pic.twitter.com/RkWReNAT2b
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The development was first reported by German newspaper Bild. The report said that talks with European leaders were resumed after the talks between Trump and Putin were completed. Although the White House did not issue any official statement regarding this phone call, Trump shared the purpose and outcome of this conversation on his social media platform Truth Social.
“At the end of the meetings I called President Putin and began planning a meeting between Zelensky and Putin, the location of which will be decided later,” Trump wrote.
He further said, “After that meeting, the three of us, myself and the two heads of state, will hold a trilateral meeting.”
The Kremlin also confirmed the call and said that the conversation lasted for about 40 minutes. According to him, during this time the two leaders discussed raising the level of representatives in the ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Trump also said that the venue of the meeting between Zelensky and Putin will be decided by both of them together.
Earlier, he described the meetings held at the White House as positive and said that these discussions included Ukrainian President Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron.
In a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, US President Donald Trump said, “It’s an honour to have the President of Ukraine with us. We have had a lot of good discussions, a lot of good talks. I think progress is being made, very substantial progress in many ways. We had a good meeting just a short while ago with the President of Russia. I think, there is a possibility that something could come out of it and today’s meeting is very important. We have 7 very powerful leaders from Europe and are going to be meeting with them right after this meeting.”
As plans are being made for a direct dialogue between Putin and Zelenskyy followed by a possible trilateral meeting that would also involve the US, experts believe this initiative could prove to be a turning point in resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
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