Kremlin Says Trump And Putin May Meet Next Week – Without Ukraine 

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin may hold a bilateral summit next week to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, the Kremlin announced Thursday, with Washington pressuring Moscow ahead of a Friday ceasefire deadline, CNN reported. 

Kremlin top aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed preparations were underway for the two leaders to meet but did not specify a location. Putin suggested the United Arab Emirates as a possible venue.  

The announcement came a day after Trump said there was a “good chance” of talks with Putin “very soon,” following a three-hour meeting in Moscow between Russian officials and US special envoy Steve Witkoff. 

Witkoff reportedly proposed both bilateral and trilateral formats involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

However, Ushakov said Russia left the trilateral proposal “completely without comment,” adding that the focus should be on the bilateral meeting between Trump and Putin.  

The potential summit – the first between US and Russian leaders since 2021 – comes as Russia is facing Friday’s deadline to agree to a ceasefire or face harsh secondary sanctions, including a 100 percent tariff on countries buying Russian oil.  

Shortly after Witkoff visited Moscow, the Trump administration imposed an additional 25 percent tariff on India for importing Russian oil. 

Zelenskyy said Ukraine is open to talks and urged Russia to show the same willingness. Putin has claimed he is willing to meet Zelensky “in principle” but said certain conditions needed to be met first. 

But analysts and critics have warned that the Russian leader is using the peace overture to stall battlefield losses while avoiding real concessions.  

They cautioned that Putin’s conditions for Ukraine amount to “a de facto capitulation”: Moscow is demanding major territorial concessions and an end to Western military aid among its terms, the Washington Post wrote. 

While Russian media and pro-Kremlin pundits welcomed the potential talks, Ukraine and its European allies voiced alarm that Russia may be trying to impose a deal favorable to Moscow by excluding Kyiv and the European Union.