NYT: Trump Seeks Talks with Putin and Zelensky...Aiming for Breakthrough to End War

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to hold a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as early as next week to mediate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war. Attention is focused on whether President Trump, who has announced strong tariffs and economic sanctions targeting Russia's attacks on civilians, will be able to find a breakthrough for ending the war through this meeting.

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The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 6th (local time), citing sources, that President Trump plans to meet President Putin as early as next week and is also seeking a trilateral summit shortly afterward with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

President Trump revealed this plan during a phone call with European leaders on the same day. Only President Trump, President Putin, and President Zelensky will attend the trilateral summit, and European leaders are not expected to be present. According to sources, the European leaders appeared to generally accept this plan.

However, the NYT reported that it is still unclear whether President Putin or President Zelensky have agreed to the plan that President Trump presented to the European leaders.

President Zelensky directly participated in the call between President Trump and the European leaders. In a statement released immediately after the call, he said that he had spoken with President Trump and emphasized that while the war must end, both he and the European leaders share the position that it must be an "honest peace."

On the European side, the call included UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. On the U.S. side, in addition to President Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff participated.

White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt stated, "The Russian side has conveyed its willingness to meet with President Trump, and the President is open to meeting both President Putin and President Zelensky." However, she did not mention the timing of the meeting.

On his own social networking service, Truth Social, President Trump announced that envoy Witkoff had met President Putin in Russia, stating, "Afterward, I updated several European allies on the discussions between the envoy and Putin."

The Trump administration also made it clear that it intends to take the lead in negotiations to end the war. While he did not disclose specific plans for a meeting with President Putin, he said, "Everyone agrees that this war must come to an end," adding, "We will work toward that in the coming days or weeks."

President Zelensky also noted that there are signs of a shift in Russia's stance. He said that after envoy Witkoff's visit to Russia, "it seems Russia is now somewhat more willing to consider a ceasefire."

In a video address that night, President Zelensky said, "The pressure on them has worked," but emphasized, "What matters is that they do not deceive us, or both us and the United States, in the details."

However, it remains uncertain whether U.S. sanctions pressure and mediation efforts for ending the war will lead to tangible results. The Associated Press noted, "Strengthening diplomatic and economic pressure on Russia risks increasing international tensions amid deteriorating U.S.-Russia relations," and added, "President Putin is showing no signs of making concessions. On the contrary, the Russian leadership continues to demonstrate its military strength."

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