Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to meet in coming days, Kremlin aide says

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to meet in the “coming days”, the Kremlin has said.

It follows Trump saying there was a “good chance” he could meet his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts together in person “very soon” to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated support for that idea, while Putin said he was not against meeting Zelensky but he was “very far” from it happening.

Trump’s deadline for Russia to agree a ceasefire in Ukraine or face more sweeping sanctions is due to expire on Friday.

A meeting between Trump and Putin would follow US envoy Steve Witkoff holding talks with the Russian president on Wednesday.

Witkoff has travelled to Moscow four times previously, visits followed by optimism from Trump but ultimately no major breakthrough in peace talks.

Speaking on Thursday, Putin said the United Arab Emirates could host his meeting with Trump, potentially as early as next week.

He said he was “very far” from a meeting with Zelensky because “conditions” had not been met and there was “still a long haul ahead for creation of such conditions”.

Previously, Putin said he would only meet Zelensky during a final phase of negotiations. Kyiv and its Western partners reject Moscow’s demands for ending the war.

Zelensky indicated his support for a summit, acknowledging that various formats of meetings had been discussed – “two bilateral and one trilateral” – and added that Europe “must be a participant” in any talks.

He wrote on X: “Ukraine is not afraid of meetings and expects the same brave approach from the Russian side.”

When asked at a White House briefing on Wednesday night whether Zelensky and Putin had agreed to a three-way summit, Trump had said there was a “very good prospect”.

Last month, Trump admitted to the BBC that after all four of Witkoff’s previous visits, Putin had disappointed him after talks had initially led to optimism.

The US President is now striking a more cautious tone, telling reporters on Wednesday: “I don’t call it a breakthrough…we have been working at this for a long time. There are thousands of young people dying… I’m here to get the thing over with.”

On Wednesday, the Kremlin released a vague statement about Witkoff’s visit, calling the discussions “constructive” and noting that both sides had exchanged “signals”.

Zelensky meanwhile said he had spoken to Trump about Witkoff’s visit, with European leaders also on the call.

The Ukrainian president has been warning that Russia would only make serious moves towards peace if it began to run out of money.

Expectations are muted for a settlement by Friday – when Trump’s deadline expires – and Russia has continued its large-scale air attacks on Ukraine despite the US threat of sanctions.

As pressure builds, Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order imposing a 25% tariff on Indian imports over its continued purchase of Russian oil.

Before taking office in January, Trump said he would be able to end the war between Russia and Ukraine in a day. The conflict has raged on and his rhetoric towards Moscow has since hardened.

Three rounds of talks between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul have failed to bring the war closer to an end, three-and-a-half years after Moscow launched its full-invasion.

Moscow’s military and political preconditions for peace remain unacceptable to Kyiv and to its Western partners.

Russian demands include Ukraine becoming a neutral state, dramatically reducing its military and abandoning its Nato aspirations.

It also wants Ukrainian military withdrawal from its four partly occupied regions in the south-east, and the demobilisation of its soldiers.

Russia also demands international recognition of Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, as well as the annexed Crimea.

Other conditions include a ban on Ukraine’s membership in any military alliances, a limit on the size of the Ukrainian army, Russian as an official language, and the lifting of international sanctions on Russia.

The Kremlin has also repeatedly turned down Kyiv’s requests for a meeting between Zelensky and Putin.

Meanwhile, the US approved $200m (£150m) in additional military aid to Ukraine on Tuesday, including support for drone production.