Washington: US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are negotiating a Ukraine ceasefire. The White House has reported that the two leaders are discussing a Ukraine ceasefire. The US administration wants to persuade Putin to sign a 30-day ceasefire proposal as a possible way to end the war. The talks have been held after a special envoy of President Trump met Russian leaders. However, Ukraine has reiterated the need for security guarantees before peace with Russia.
The talks come after Ukrainian officials agreed to a ceasefire proposal during talks led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Saudi Arabia last week. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky doubts Putin is ready for peace as Russian forces continue to attack Ukraine. Trump had said ahead of the phone conversation that he would discuss with Putin the land and power plants that have been captured during the three-year war.
What Trump said before talking to Putin
"The situation in Russia is bad, the situation in Ukraine is bad too. What's happening in Ukraine is not good, but we'll see if we can get a peace deal, a ceasefire and peace. And I think we'll be able to do that," Trump told reporters on Monday. To prepare for the Trump-Putin talks, White House special envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin in Moscow last week to discuss the proposal.
Trump is appeasing Russia
The US President said that Washington and Moscow have begun discussions on "dividing some assets" between Ukraine and Russia as part of an agreement to end the conflict. Trump, who vowed to end the war soon during his election campaign, has repeatedly boasted of his relationship with Putin and blamed Ukraine for Russia's unprovoked invasion. Not only this, he accused Zelensky of unnecessarily prolonging the biggest war in Europe since World War II.
Putin's spokesman told the issues of the talks
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday that Trump and Putin would discuss the war in Ukraine. He also said that many questions still remain about normalizing US-Russia relations. Peskov said that the talks will take place between 1 pm and 3 pm GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) (6.30 pm to 8.30 pm Indian time). He said that control over plots and power plants would be part of the talks.
Discussion on the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant
Witkoff and White House press secretary Caroline Levitt said US and Russian officials discussed the future of Europe's largest Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. The plant has come under attack since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in 2022 and seized the plant shortly after. The plant is a vital asset, producing about a quarter of Ukraine's electricity in the year before the war.
