President Donald Trump said in an interview released on Saturday that he had talked with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“He wants to see people stop dying,” Trump stated to the New York Post.
It was unclear when the leaders spoke, whether they had spoken since Trump took office in January, and how often. AWN has contacted the National Security Council for clarification.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, told AWN that he “can neither deny nor confirm this news.” He noted that Washington and Moscow communicate “through different channels” as the Trump administration “gains activity.”
“So…there could be something I don’t know,” Peskov stated.
Trump stated in the interview that he “better not say” how many times he has spoken with Putin, but praised his “good relationship” with his Russian counterpart.
The US president expressed optimism that Putin’s conflict in Ukraine, which is reaching its third anniversary, will finish “quickly.” He had earlier promised to resolve the problem within 24 hours of assuming office.
“I hope it is quick. Every day, people die. The war in Ukraine is quite nasty. “I want to finish this damn thing,” he told the New York Post.
Trump stated earlier this week that negotiations to end the conflict had “made a lot of progress.”
During the interview, which took place as Trump flew to Florida on Air Force One on Friday, the president instructed his top security adviser, Mike Waltz, to “get these meetings going.”
“They want to meet.” Every day, people die. Young, beautiful troops are being slain. Young males, like my boys. On both sides. “All over the battlefield,” he explained.
On Friday, the president told reporters that he would “probably” see Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week and suggested that he also planned to speak with Putin.
“I will probably be meeting with President Zelensky next week, and I will probably be talking to President Putin,” Trump replied.
Zelensky is set to head Ukraine’s delegation to the Munich Security Conference, where Vice President JD Vance and special envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg are also planned to appear, but not Trump.
Earlier this week, Trump stated that he wanted to get access to Ukraine’s supply of rare earth minerals in exchange for ongoing US aid to the nation.
“We’re looking to do a deal with Ukraine, where they’re going to secure what we’re giving them with their rare earths and other things,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, claiming that Europe has not offered Ukraine with the same amount of assistance as the US.
The transactional proposal provides some insight into Trump’s objectives on the Ukraine war. He has long grumbled about the US burden in arming Kyiv, but he has not outlined his plans to terminate or continue support since assuming office.
The Kremlin informed AWN earlier this week that there had been no substantive talks on a possible meeting between Trump and Putin.
“They haven’t had any initial contact to discuss whether they need to meet or not and if they need, when and how,” Peskov informed me.
Amid increased expectations of communication between the two leaders, a top Russian senator informed state media that “advanced” arrangements for a meeting were underway, maybe as early as this month.
