By Zeke Miller and Aamer Madhani, Associated Press
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (AP) – President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was moving to organize direct talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin as soon as he can, after Putin chose to skip peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey.
“I think it’s time for us to do so,” Trump told journalists when he finished a four-day visit to the Middle East.
Trump later told journalists after taking Air Force One to start the return to Washington that he could call Putin soon.
“He and I will meet, and I think we are going to resolve it or maybe not,” said Trump. “At least we will know. And if we do not solve it, it will be very interesting. ”
Trump reiterated that he was not surprised that Putin jumped the talks for Friday in Türkiye. Putin did not want to go because he is not there, said Trump.
The republican president added that he would hold a meeting with Putin “as soon as we can install it”.
“I would actually leave here and leave there,” said Trump, who noted that his daughter Tiffany had just given birth to his first child. “I want to see my beautiful grandson.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to participate in talks when Trump has pressed that leaders find a solution to war, in progress since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 in Russia. But Putin rejected the call to meet face to face with Zelenskyy.
Trump pressed both parties to quickly reach an end of war agreement. Zelenskyy accepted an American plan for a first 30 -day stop to hostilities, but Russia has not signed and continued to hit targets in Ukraine.
However, Russia and Ukraine organized their first direct peace talks in three years on Friday, meeting in Istanbul for negotiations. Officials and observers expect that they do not produce little immediate progress in stopping the war of more than 3 years.
“He didn’t go, and I understand that,” said Trump. “We are going to do it. We need to. Five thousand young people are killed every week on average, and we will do it. ”
Trump told journalists on Thursday that a meeting between him and Putin was crucial to break up.
“I don’t think something will happen, whether you like it or not, until he and I gathered,” said Trump. “But we will have to solve it because too many people die.”
Originally published:
California Daily Newspapers
