The war must end: Trump wants a meeting with Putin and Selensky soon

Trump had previously informed his European partners about the conversation on the Ukraine war that his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, had held with Putin in Moscow. In the phone call with Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and other heads of government, Trump also mentioned his intention to meet personally with the Russian president, as the German Press Agency learned from government sources in Berlin. Putin received Witkoff for about three hours.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox Business: "Today was a good day." But there is still much to do, and he doesn't want to exaggerate. "We still have a long way to go." They now have a better understanding of the conditions under which Russia would be willing to end the war. This must now be compared with what the Ukrainians, especially, and the European allies, are willing to accept. If the two are close enough, there would be an opportunity for Trump to meet.

The US President had previously written on the Truth Social platform that his negotiator, Witkoff, had had an "extremely productive" meeting with Putin. "Great progress was made." Trump did not provide details. However, he himself had subsequently informed some of the European allies – and everyone agreed that the war must be ended. They would work toward this "in the coming days and weeks."

According to information from Kyiv, Trump also informed Ukrainian President Zelenskyy that evening about the results of Witkoff's negotiations in Moscow.

The New York Times, citing two people familiar with the plan, reported that Trump intends to meet personally with Putin as early as next week. A three-way meeting with Zelenskyy will follow shortly thereafter. CNN reported similarly, citing a source from a European government, among others.