Putin says he wants to meet Trump, possibly in UAE
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Tuesday. Photo: Mikhail Metzel/Pool via Getty
Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Trump have agreed to meet, likely next week, the Kremlin said Thursday.
- Putin himself was somewhat more noncommittal later on Thursday, saying only that there was mutual interest in meeting, possibly in the United Arab Emirates.
Friction point: The White House wants to follow a Trump-Putin meeting with a three-way peace summit involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Putin seems cool on that idea, and the Ukrainians think he's just trying to soften Trump's position.
State of play: The White House said Wednesday that Putin had proposed the summit during his meeting Wednesday with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, but an official told Axios no location was set.
- Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov said Thursday that a location had been agreed and the sides were discussing other details. But Putin seemed to contradict that in a meeting with the president of the UAE, saying that country was one possible location.
- Putin also said he was not opposed to meeting Zelensky but that "conditions should be created" for such a meeting to take place.
Between the lines: It's no sure thing that Trump and Putin will sit down next week, for what would be their first meeting since 2019.
- In his earlier remarks, Ushakov cautioned that it could be difficult to make all necessary preparations by next week.
- White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Wednesday just said that Trump was "open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky" and "wants this brutal war to end."
Flashback: Putin previously proposed the idea of a leader-level summit on Ukraine before backtracking. He has continued to reject Trump's proposals for an unconditional ceasefire.
What they're saying: Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that there is "a very good prospect" Putin and Zelensky will agree to meet "very soon."
- At the same time, Trump lowered expectations and said he has "been disappointed before with this one" and stressed that while a lot of progress was made in the Putin-Witkoff meeting, he doesn't want to declare "a breakthrough."
- Trump said there are going to be more secondary sanctions on Russia, beyond the tariffs he imposed on India for buying Russian oil.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged in an interview with Fox Business that "a lot has to happen" before a trilateral meeting between Trump, Putin and Zelensky.
- "There are still many impediments to overcome, and we hope to do that in the next few days and hours," Rubio said.
- Rubio said the meeting between Putin and Witkoff helped the U.S. better understand the Russian conditions for ending the war.
The other side: Ukrainian officials see the proposal as a diplomatic maneuver aimed at trying to soften Trump's current position toward Russia and ease his frustration with Putin.
- It is also unclear whether Putin is willing to hold a trilateral summit with Trump and Zelensky — something the Ukrainian president has been proposing for several months.
- Zelensky said in a video on his Telegram channel on Wednesday that "it looks like Putin is more inclined" to agree to a ceasefire and stressed that shows the pressure on Russia is working.
- "It is crucial they don't deceive us," Zelensky said.
State of play: Trump sounded his most optimistic note on the conflict in weeks after the Putin-Witkoff meeting, saying "great progress" had been made and further work toward ending the war would take place "in the days and weeks to come."
- But he also announced he was doubling tariffs on India to 50%, following through on threats to punish customers of Russian oil.
- More secondary sanctions are still expected on Friday, a U.S. official told Axios.
Editor's note: This is a developing story and has been updated throughout.
