US President Donald Trump has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “make a deal” to end the current conflict in Ukraine, after his closely-watched talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin
in Alaska yielded no breakthrough, although both leaders described the talks as productive.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump described his talks with Putin as a “10” out of 10, and touted “very good progress” in the road to peace in Ukraine, although there was “no deal until there’s a deal”.
Trump stressed that Ukraine has to agree to a peace deal. “You know, he’s (Putin) a strong guy, he’s tough as hell on all of that, but the meeting was a very warm meeting between two very important countries, and it’s very good when they get along. I think we’re pretty close to a deal. Now look, Ukraine has to agree to it,” he said.
When asked what his message would be to Zelenskyy, Trump said, “Make a deal.” He said the next step after the Alaska summit would be calls between Trump, Zelenskyy and other NATO leaders. “Look, Russia is a very big power, and they’re (Ukraine) not,” he told Fox News.
Trump On Putin-Zelenskyy Meeting
The US President also expressed willingness to be present in a peace meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy. “It’s really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done, and I would also say the European nations, they have to get involved a little bit, but it’s up to President Zelenskyy … and if they’d like, I’ll be at that next meeting,” he said.
He also criticised Biden’s handling of the crisis, saying Ukraine could not possibly agree to a deal with Russia because former President Joe Biden “handed out money like it was candy,” referring to the billions of dollars in military aid.
He also said that both Putin and Zelenskyy want him to be at the trilateral meeting to bring peace in Ukraine, while stressing that the number one priority for the United States was to save lives in both warring nations.
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What Happened In Alaska Summit?
Putin and Trump exchanged a warm handshake and smiles ahead of the historic summit in Alaska to discuss the future of the Ukraine war, although the talks ended without any deal to halt the fighting, now in its fourth year.
The two leaders appeared together in a joint press conference, where they hailed progress on several issues without offering more details. On the other hand, Putin said Russia was willing to see the end of the war, but stressed that the “root causes” of the conflict must be eliminated for a long-term peace.
The Russian leader also said he expected Ukraine and its European allies to accept the results of the US and not try to “disrupt the emerging process”. He also said that the war would not have happened if Trump was president in 2022 instead of Joe Biden.
