President Donald Trump on Thursday offered a major concession to Russian President Vladimir Putin, fueling uncertainty about the United States’ role in the future of the three-year conflict.
Trump told reporters Putin doesn’t have to confirm his attendance for a three-way meeting between him and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a condition for holding face-to-face talks with him.
“They would like to meet with me, and I’ll do whatever I can to stop the killing,” Trump said of Russian leaders.
Trump had previously told European leaders, including Zelenskyy, on Wednesday that he would be meeting with Putin shortly before holding a trilateral summit with the leaders of the two nations at war, according to The New York Times.
But Putin poured cold water on that prospect a day later, saying “certain conditions should be created” for such a meeting, while making clear that he isn’t prepared to agree to sit down with Zelenskyy.
