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Trump dials Putin after Zelensky meet; says arranging for their bilateral talks
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters after EU leaders' meeting with Donald Trump that Putin agreed to meet Zelensky within two weeks.
US President Donald Trump called his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, between the meeting with European leaders at the White House on Monday, a move that came after his closed-door discussions with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky.
Trump said that he has begun the arrangements for a meeting between Putin and Zelensky, the location for which, he said, will be determined. The US President added that following the meeting of the two leaders, they will hold a trilateral meeting. Follow Trump-Zelensky talks LIVE updates
"I had a very good meeting with distinguished guests, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, President Emmanuel Macron, of France, President Alexander Stubb, of Finland, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, of Italy, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of the United Kingdom, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Friedrich Merz, President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, in the White House, which ended in a further meeting in the Oval Office. During the meeting we discussed Security Guarantees for Ukraine, which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America. Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
"At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy. 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. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, are coordinating with Russia and Ukraine. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" he added.
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Earlier in the day, Trump and Zelensky met at the White House, made public statements to the reporters and then held a private one-on-one meeting, which the Ukrainian President described as the "best conversation" with the President so far.
Trump-Putin Phone Call
The phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin lasted for 40 minutes, according to reports from Russian news agencies. A Kremlin aide reportedly said that Putin and Trump discussed the idea of exploring the possibility of raising the level of Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the negotiation.
Trump said after the call that "this was a very good, early step for a war that has been going on for almost four years".
The Kremlin aide further noted that Putin and Trump also spoke in favour of the continuation of direct talks between the Russian and the Ukrainian delegations.
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The two leaders also agreed to continue close contact with each other on the Ukrainian crisis and other pressing issues.
After the European leaders' meeting with Trump, Finnish President Alexander Stubb noted how Trump felt that it was a "good idea" to call Putin and propose a bilateral meeting between the Russian and the Ukrainian leader.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Putin agreed to meet Zelensky within two weeks. "The American president spoke with the Russian president and agreed that there would be a meeting between the Russian president and the Ukrainian president within the next two weeks," Merz told reporters as he left from the space.
(with inputs from Reuters, AFP)
