Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have agreed "to meet in the coming days", per a report from the Kremlin.
According to Russia’s IFAX news agency, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov revealed that both sides have agreed "in principle" to hold a bilateral meeting between the Russian president and the former US leader.
“At the suggestion of the American side, an agreement was agreed in principle to hold a bilateral summit in the coming days, that is, a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump,” Ushakov confirmed.
The venue for the meeting has already been settled on, although the exact location will be announced at a later date. Possible hosts being floated include Saudi Arabia, Turkey, or the UAE, per the Independent.
Ushakov, who advises Putin on foreign affairs, also shared that discussions are ongoing regarding the details of the summit.
While a specific date remains unclear, the summit could potentially happen as early as next week. Still, Ushakov cautioned that “it is still difficult to say how many days preparations for the summit will take.”
The announcement followed a visit to Moscow by US special envoy Steve Witkoff, who discussed the potential for a trilateral meeting that would also involve Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Ushakov acknowledged that Witkoff “had talked about the idea of a trilateral meeting between Putin, Trump, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” but noted that “Moscow left it without comment.”
Whether Putin would agree to Trump's condition of meeting Zelenskyy remains a major question.
Sky News correspondent Ivor Bennett, reporting from Moscow, said the only public information released after Witkoff’s meeting with Putin was “brief.”
He told presenter Kamali Melbourne: “There was a feeling ahead of the meeting that Russia and Putin would have to offer Trump something if they wanted to temper his anger and a face-to-face meeting may have been it.”
Bennett emphasized that while Trump has long shown interest in a sit-down with Putin, the latest developments are “the most concrete yet about a possible summit.”
Still, he added a note of caution: “This is something he [Putin] has always been very reluctant to do,” referring to the possibility of Putin sitting down with Zelenskyy. “If that's the case, I am doubtful this summit will happen.”
Even if it does go ahead, there’s skepticism across Europe about Putin’s intentions.
Bennett explained: “Even if it does, there will be many in Europe accusing Putin of playing for time because a summit is not a ceasefire.”
The upcoming Putin-Trump meeting would mark the first direct engagement between a US and Russian leader since President Joe Biden met Putin in Geneva back in June 2021 — eight months before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Adding fuel to the fire, Trump himself recently hinted at diplomatic momentum following Witkoff’s visit to Moscow, stating: “Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come.”
He also said there was “a good chance” of a leaders' summit involving both Putin and Zelenskyy.