Trump says he intends to meet Putin and Zelenskyy as early as next week, following Witkoff trip to Moscow
New sanctions against Russia will still kick in on Friday, the White House said, even as U.S. President Donald Trump praised a meeting between U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Vladimir Putin as 'highly productive' – and said he was open to meeting the Russian leader as early as next week.
Trump wrote on social media that 'great progress was made' in the Wednesday meeting, adding that he has already updated some of America's European allies.
Trump told European leaders in a phone call that he intended to meet soon with Putin – potentially as early as next week – followed by a trilateral meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to two sources familiar with the call. A European government source also confirmed the contents of the call.
One White House official noted that while Trump said he intended to meet with Putin as early as next week, it would likely be difficult to execute a meeting on that timeline given the negotiating that would have to be done, as well as the logistical hurdles.
'The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the president is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelenskyy. President Trump wants this brutal war to end,' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.
A White House official said earlier on Wednesday that 'the secondary sanctions are still expected to be implemented on Friday.'
The Putin-Witkoff meeting, which Russian state media said lasted around three hours, took place after a frustrated Trump imposed a deadline on Moscow to agree to a ceasefire or face tough secondary sanctions, hitting countries that buy Russian oil with a 100 per cent tariff.
Oil and gas revenues are a key source of cash for the Kremlin, making up roughly a quarter of Russia's government budget, so losing customers would be painful – and could hurt Moscow's ability to finance the its war on Ukraine.
The Kremlin had earlier described the meeting between Witkoff and Putin as 'constructive and useful,' according to Russian state media TASS.
'Putin conveyed some signals to the United States on the Ukrainian issue. Corresponding signals were also received from President Trump,' state media outlet RIA Novosti reported, citing the Kremlin.
The Kremlin said it would release more information on what was discussed after Witkoff reports back to Trump, RIA said in a post on social media.
Zelenskyy, who spoke to Trump following the Witkoff-Putin meeting, said 'it seems that Russia is now more inclined toward (a) ceasefire).'
'The pressure on Russia is working. But the main thing is that they do not deceive us in the details. Neither us, nor the United States,' the Ukrainian leader said during his nightly video address to the nation.
Trump also spoke with Zelenskyy on Tuesday, ahead of Witkoff's trip, to discuss potential U.S. sanctions against Russia.
Trump growing impatient with Putin
Earlier in the day, the U.S. envoy was greeted at the airport in Moscow by Russia's investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev. Video later posted by the Kremlin showed Witkoff shaking hands with Putin ahead of their meeting.
Trump has grown increasingly impatient with Russia's resistance to his peace efforts. Since the last meeting between Witkoff and Putin in April, Russia has ramped up its assault on Ukraine, attacking cities with an onslaught of missiles and drones.
Trump has called Russia's attacks 'disgusting' and has accused Putin of peddling 'bullsh*t' in their tense phone conversations.
Prior to Wednesday's meeting, Trump said that he would wait for the outcome of the talks to decide whether or not to impose new sanctions on Russia.
'We're going to see what happens,' the president said at the White House. 'We'll make that determination at that time.'
Hours after the meeting in Moscow, Trump imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on India as punishment for its imports of Russian oil, according to a document posted on the White House website.
Trump earlier this week threatened India with the new tariffs, saying they were helping Russia wage war in Ukraine.
'India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the oil purchased, selling it on the open market for big profits. They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine,' he wrote on social media.
'Cruelty aimed at instilling fear'
As diplomacy was underway in the Kremlin, Ukraine was once again left reeling following a spate of Russian attacks across the country overnight into Wednesday.
At least six people were killed in strikes carried out by Moscow in the 24 hours before Wednesday morning, including the deadly bombing of a recreation centre in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack on the centre, where two people died and four children were among the 12 wounded, as having 'zero military sense,' calling it 'just cruelty aimed at instilling fear.'
A gas compressor station that helps Ukraine receive U.S. and Azerbaijani energy imports was also attacked overnight, according to the country's energy ministry.
The gas transmission facility in the town of Novosilske, which is close to the border with Romania in Ukraine's southern Odesa region, was targeted by dozens of strike drones, the ministry said.
'Hundreds of families were left without gas,' Zelenskyy said in a statement. 'This was a deliberate blow to our preparations for the heating season – absolutely cynical, like every Russian strike on our energy infrastructure.'
Meanwhile, Ukraine also said Wednesday morning that the U.S. State Department has signed off on a US$200 million deal which will allow its partners to purchase military supplies on its behalf, including technical support for heavy artillery. The U.S. has not yet commented.
On Tuesday, Zelenskyy welcomed pledges from NATO members worth more than $1 billion, through an initiative in which four of Ukraine's European allies – the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway and Sweden – will purchase US-made weapons for Kyiv.
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