U.S. President Donald Trump continues to plow ahead with statements that he wants to end the war in Ukraine, though it’s not clear that his Russian counterpart is on the same page as to how that could happen.
Trump met with French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House on Monday to discuss the war in Ukraine, a move that comes as the country marks three years of all-out conflict with Russia.
While speaking to reporters during Macron’s visit, Trump said he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine as part of a potential deal to end the war, noting he had asked the Russian leader that question.
Yet Putin said Monday he has not discussed resolving the conflict in Ukraine in detail with Trump, and neither did Russian and American negotiating teams when they met last week in Saudi Arabia.
In remarks broadcast on state television, Putin also said Russia does not rule out European countries participating in a peace settlement.
Putin and senior Russian officials had previously indicated they will not accept Western forces in Ukraine.
Ending war is in Russia’s interests: Trump
Back in Washington, Trump was asked by a reporter why he believes he can trust Putin to negotiate on Ukraine.
The U.S. president said he believed it was in Russia’s benefit to “make a deal” to bring the war to an end.
“I really believe that he wants to make a deal,” Trump said, referring to Putin. “I may be wrong, but I believe he wants to make a deal.”
Ukraine has faced three years of all-out war since Russia launched its wide-ranging, full-scale invasion of its neighbour on Feb. 24, 2022. The war has killed thousands of Ukrainian civilians and upended daily life there ever since.
U.S., Ukraine ‘very close’ on minerals deal: Trump
Also Monday, Trump signalled that he believed that the U.S. and Ukraine were close to an agreement on resources.
“It looks like we’re getting very close,” Trump told reporters at the start of his bilateral meeting with Macron.
He added that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could potentially visit Washington this week or next to sign the deal.
The Trump administration has pressed Ukraine to agree to provide the U.S. access to its rare earths and other minerals.
But Zelenskyy and Ukrainian officials haven’t signed off on a proposal that U.S. officials initially brought forward.
Ukraine is also looking for future security guarantees as part of any agreement. Trump, however, did not say whether the emerging deal would include American security guarantees.
“Europe is going to make sure nothing happens,” Trump said.
