The Kremlin confirmed on Thursday that preparations are underway for a possible meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump next week. However, it firmly denied that Putin had agreed to take part in a follow-up trilateral meeting involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Putin met with Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, at the Kremlin on Wednesday. U.S. reports following the meeting suggested that the Russian leader had tentatively agreed to hold initial talks with Trump, followed by a three-way summit with Zelenskyy. The proposed meetings were reportedly part of Washington’s efforts to help broker an end to the war in Ukraine.
On Thursday morning, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov dismissed these claims, telling reporters in Moscow that a trilateral meeting was never seriously considered. “Our focus is currently on organizing a bilateral meeting between President Putin and Mr. Trump,” he said. “The idea of a three-way meeting was raised informally by the American side during Wednesday’s talks, but it was neither discussed nor endorsed by Russia. We did not comment on it.”
The idea of Putin and Trump negotiating over Ukraine’s future without Kyiv present is likely to raise alarm in both Ukraine and across European capitals.
President Zelenskyy, speaking on Thursday, refrained from directly criticizing Trump. Instead, he announced he would spend the day in discussions with European allies, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. In a post on Telegram, Zelenskyy emphasized Ukraine’s core priorities: “The first is stopping the killing—Russia must agree to a ceasefire. The second is establishing a viable format for talks that can deliver lasting peace.”
He added that meaningful progress could only be achieved through direct talks between leaders. “Ukraine has consistently said that real solutions can only be found at the highest levels. We must agree on a time and framework for such a meeting, where a full range of issues can be addressed.”
Zelenskyy has long advocated for face-to-face negotiations with Putin, with mediation from leaders like Trump or Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Thus far, Putin has resisted, saying lower-level working groups should make headway before any top-level talks. But attempts at such negotiations—particularly those held in Turkey—have made little progress, with Russia sending low-ranking delegations and offering no substantial proposals.
In recent weeks, Trump has shifted to a more critical stance toward Moscow. For the first time, he condemned ongoing Russian strikes on Ukrainian civilians as “disgusting” and vowed to impose new sanctions if no progress was made by Friday’s deadline.
The White House has confirmed that sanctions are still planned. On Wednesday, new tariffs targeting Indian imports were announced in response to India’s continued purchases of Russian oil. Despite this, Trump appeared content with the outcome of Witkoff’s visit to Moscow.
According to Ushakov, the talks were “businesslike” and focused on the potential for improved U.S.-Russia relations. “It was emphasized that our countries could develop relations based on a completely different, mutually beneficial foundation—one that diverges sharply from the adversarial path of recent years,” he said.
The location of a potential Trump-Putin summit has yet to be publicly confirmed, though Turkey and countries in the Middle East are reportedly the leading candidates. Ushakov noted that a venue had been selected but declined to disclose it.
Trump, speaking Wednesday evening, said the meeting could take place “very soon.” Still, not all in Washington are confident. Secretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned that while talks could happen in the near future, “a lot still needs to fall into place” before anything is confirmed.
If the meeting proceeds, it would mark the first high-level summit between U.S. and Russian leaders since President Joe Biden met Putin in Geneva in 2021.
