US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he could meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin “very soon” and believes Putin wants to stop the fighting in Ukraine.
“No time set, but it could be very soon,” Trump told reporters. His statement came hours after US secretary of state Marco Rubio downplayed expectations for high-level talks in Riyadh aimed at ending the war.
Rubio is leading a US delegation to Saudi Arabia, where discussions with Russian officials will take place. These talks come as the Ukraine war nears its third anniversary.
Trump said his team has had extensive discussions with Russian officials, including his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who recently met Putin for about three hours.
“I think he wants to stop fighting,” Trump said about Putin.
When asked if he thinks Putin wants to take over all of Ukraine, Trump replied, “That was my question to him. If he’s going to go on… that would have caused me a big problem.”
“I think he wants to end it, and they want to end it fast. Both of them,” he added. “Zelenskyy wants to end it too.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russia might be preparing to “wage war” against a weakened Nato if Trump reduces US support for the alliance.
Trump dismissed Zelenskyy’s remarks, saying he was “not even a little bit” concerned.
Trump has previously said he would end the Ukraine conflict in one day if re-elected, but Rubio said resolving the war “would not be easy.”
“A process towards peace is not a one-meeting thing,” Rubio told CBS at the Munich Security Conference.
Status of negotiations
Rubio will lead the US team to Riyadh, but it is unclear if Ukraine will take part. He also said he was not sure who Russia would send.
“Nothing’s been finalized yet,” Rubio said. The goal is to open a broader conversation that “would include Ukraine and would involve the end of the war.”
Witkoff and US national security adviser Michael Waltz are also expected to attend the talks.
Trump and Putin spoke on Wednesday in a long phone call, agreeing to start ceasefire negotiations immediately. The call was unexpected for Nato allies and Ukraine, with Zelenskyy insisting there should be “no decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine.”
“Right now there is no process,” Rubio said after speaking with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “One phone call does not make peace.”
In an interview with NBC on Sunday, Zelenskyyy said Putin cannot be trusted as a negotiating partner.
“I don’t think in geopolitics, anyone should trust anyone,” Rubio said. “The next few weeks and days will determine whether (Putin) is serious or not.”