Trump-Putin-Zelenskyy to hold trilateral meeting soon

The US, Russia, and Ukraine will soon hold a trilateral meeting to discuss a pathway to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine, American President Donald Trump said on Monday (August 18).

Trump said he has begun arrangements for a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The president said this shortly after speaking by phone with Putin on Monday as he hosted Zelenskyy and top European leaders in Washington to discuss his push to end the brutal war.

Trilateral talks

The talks came amid a significant measure of trepidation on the continent that Trump is pressing Ukraine to make concessions that will only further embolden Putin.

Also read: French President Macron signals Ukraine might need to give up territory for peace

“I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy,” Trump said in a social media post soon after lengthy talks with Zelenskyy and the European leaders ended.

“After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself. Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years.” It was not clear if Putin has fully signed on to such talks.

Russia state news agency Tass cited Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov saying Putin and Trump “spoke in favour” of continuing direct talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.

Ushakov said they also discussed “the idea of raising the level of the direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations.”

What Zelenskyy said

Zelenskyy told reporters following the White House meeting that if Russia does “not demonstrate a will to meet, then we will ask the United States to act accordingly.”

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who attended the White House talks, added in an appearance on Fox News that “if Russia is not playing ball” on direct talks with Ukraine “the United States plus Europe will do more when it comes to tariffs and sanctions” on Moscow.

Zelenskyy previously had said he wanted Russia to agree to a ceasefire before any meeting between himself and Putin, but he said Monday that if the Ukrainians started setting conditions, the Russians would do the same.

“That's why I believe that we must meet without any conditions, and think about what development there can be of this path to the end of war,” Zelenskyy said.

Earlier, Trump said during talks with Zelenskyy and the European leaders that a potential ceasefire and who gets Ukrainian territory seized by Russia should be hashed out during a face-to-face meeting between the warring countries' two leaders.

“We're going to let the president go over and talk to the president and we'll see how that works out,” Trump said.

(With agency inputs)