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US envoy headed to Russia ‘right now’ for Ukraine ceasefire talks, says Donald Trump
The White House said that Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff, mediator in the Gaza and Ukraine wars, would be in Moscow this week.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that American negotiators were headed to Moscow this week to achieve a ceasefire in the Ukraine war, with officials saying that the US wants Russia to agree to an unconditional halt in the conflict.
On the other hand, the Kremlin said that it was awaiting details of a US-Ukrainian proposal that was agreed upon this week. However, it gave no indication of its own readiness to accept a truce deal.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy had said that his country was ready for a deal, and the US had indicated that it would issue a "strong" response if Putin does not accord.
Trump told reporters at the Oval Office, "People are going to Russia right now as we speak. And hopefully we can get a ceasefire from Russia," he added.
The White House said that Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff, mediator in the Gaza and Ukraine wars, would be in Moscow this week.
‘Hope he’s going to have a ceasefire'
The US President though did not mention whether he would speak with Putin, but added that there had been "positive messages" from Moscow, saying "I hope he's going to have a ceasefire."
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Additionally, Trump also said that if the fighting could be paused, then "I think that would be 80 per cent of the way of getting this horrible bloodbath finished."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington wanted Moscow's agreement with no strings attached. "That's what we know, if they're prepared to do it unconditionally," Rubio said.
"If the response is, 'yes', then we know we've made real progress, and there's a real chance of peace. If their response is 'no', it would be highly unfortunate, and it'll make their intentions clear," he added.
The defense ministers of France, Britain, Germany, Italy, and Poland met in Paris recently to discuss how they could support Ukraine, and any ceasefire.
Even though the Kremlin has made no immediate comment on the US-Ukraine proposal, the Russian foreign ministry had earlier this month that a temporary ceasefire would be unacceptable.
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However, Trump said "devastating" sanctions were possible if Russia refused a deal but added that he hoped that it won't be necessary.
"I can do things financially that would be very bad for Russia. I don't want to do that because I want to get peace," he added.
In the US-Ukraine talks, while America agreed to resume military aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine, Kyiv showed openness to a mediated 30-day ceasefire deal.
(with AFP inputs)
