The Kremlin announced Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to meeting with incoming US President Donald Trump, following Trump’s assertion that plans for a meeting were underway.
“The president has repeatedly stated his openness to contact with international leaders, including the US president, including Donald Trump,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Trump, set to be inaugurated on January 20, has expressed confidence in his ability to broker an end to the nearly three-year conflict between Russia and Ukraine, though he has not outlined a detailed plan.
On Thursday, Trump told Republican governors at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida that discussions were advancing. “He [Putin] wants to meet, and we’re setting it up,” Trump said, adding, “We have to get that war over with, that’s a bloody mess.”
The Kremlin confirmed there are “no conditions” for talks, with Peskov stating, “What is required is mutual desire and political will to solve problems through dialogue.”
Trump’s optimism for resolving the conflict has raised concerns in Kyiv, where officials fear a peace deal could favor Moscow’s interests. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has emphasized the critical role of US support, which has amounted to tens of billions of dollars in aid since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Zelensky continues to push for his “peace-through-strength” strategy, advocating for NATO protections and firm Western security guarantees as part of any agreement to end the war.
While Putin and Trump have both signaled readiness for dialogue, the path to a settlement remains fraught with geopolitical complexities.
