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The US president may hold another conversation with Vladimir Putin later this week
US President Donald Trump has reiterated that, so far, he has found it easier to deal with Russia than Ukraine as he seeks to broker peace between the two countries, expressing hope that Moscow would agree to a proposed 30-day ceasefire with Kiev.
Trump made the remarks at a business roundtable on Tuesday, shortly after Ukrainian and American delegations met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where Kiev agreed to what the US leader described as a “full ceasefire” while Washington unblocked military and intelligence assistance.
“I’ve been saying that Russia has been easier to deal with so far than Ukraine, which is not supposed to be the way it is, but it is,” Trump said. “But we have a full ceasefire from Ukraine, and that’s good… and we hope to get Russia.”
Earlier in the day, Trump told journalists that reaching such an agreement would be a major step toward a final deal to end the conflict. Otherwise, “we just keep going on,” he said, warning that “lots of people” would be killed.
“Hopefully, [Russian President Vladimir Putin] can agree to it also and we can get this show on the road,” Trump added, indicating that he may hold another phone conversation with his Russian counterpart later this week.
The Kremlin has not yet provided an official response to the statements, but Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that contacts between Moscow and Washington in the coming days could not be ruled out. Kremlin pool reporter Dmitry Smirnov has suggested that a phone call between the US and Russian presidents could take place on Friday.
Moscow has previously rejected temporary ceasefires, arguing that they would only allow Kiev to regroup and rearm. Russian officials have insisted on a permanent, legally binding solution that addresses the root causes of the conflict.
Trump had said earlier that Kiev was more difficult to deal with, recalling a heated exchange in the Oval Office that ended with Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky being told to leave prematurely. When asked by reporters on Tuesday whether Zelensky was welcome back at the White House, Trump replied, “Sure, absolutely,” noting a “very big difference” since the botched visit.
