U.S. President Donald Trump has said he believes there is a strong likelihood that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin will agree to his proposed initiative to hold a joint meeting in the near future.
He made the statement at the White House on Wednesday, August 6, Ukrinform reports.
“There’s a very good prospect that they will,” Trump said when asked about whether Putin and Zelensky had agreed to take part in a joint meeting.
Trump added that a specific time and location for the summit had not yet been determined.
“We had some very good talks with President Putin today and there’s a very good chance that we could be ending the round, ending that road. That road was long and continues to be long, but there’s a good chance that there will be a meeting very soon,” Trump said.
When asked what the breakthrough from Steve Witkoff’s meeting in Moscow was, and whether Putin made any concessions, Trump replied that he would not call it a “breakthrough.”
He also cited figures for Russian and Ukrainian battlefield losses that differed significantly from those he mentioned just a week earlier.
“In terms of soldiers, I think Russia’s lost over 20,000 since the beginning of the year. 20,000. And I guess the estimate for Ukraine is about 9,000. It’s a terrible situation. We want to get it stopped,” Trump said.
Last Friday, however, he claimed that 112,500 Russian soldiers had been killed in Ukraine since the beginning of the year, while Ukrainian losses were around 8,000 over the same period.
Trump also stressed that there are no American troops fighting in Ukraine, but that he feels an obligation to get this war stopped.
When asked whether he would adhere to the ten-day deadline he previously mentioned for Russia following Wednesday’s talks, Trump replied: “We’re pretty much getting close to it right now, but we’re having very serious talks right now about getting out of Ukraine, getting it settled, getting it ended.”
Trump stated that under his presidency, Russia did not seize any territory. According to him, territorial occupations occurred under Presidents Bush (referring to Russia’s occupation of parts of Georgia), Obama, and Biden.
“I’m here to get the thing over with. It would have never started if I were president. And we’re here to get it stopped and get the death stopped,” Trump said.
Trump earlier called the meeting between his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow “very productive” and said “great progress” had been made.
Later, U.S. media reported that Trump intends to hold a personal meeting with Putin as early as next week, and shortly thereafter, he plans to meet with both Putin and Zelensky.
Photo: The White House
Source: Trump says there's 'very good prospect' of meeting with Zelensky, Putin
