A meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump is "essential for numerous reasons," but no date has been set as of now, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday.
He mentioned that such a meeting is definitely being considered.
Peskov stated that it needs to be properly prepared, which demands effort from various experts.
However, what exactly do we mean by "efforts"? According to Kurt Volker, who served as the US special representative for Ukraine negotiations during the Trump administration, the primary thing is the Kremlin’s dedication to a truce in their conflict with Ukraine.
During an interview with Euronews at the Kyiv Security Forum, Volker stated that the U.S. president would like to meet with his Russian counterpart, though this meeting should occur only following a established ceasefire in Ukraine.
" Trump aims to conclude the conflict, after which he intends to restore relations with Russia. He believes that integrating Russia back into the worldwide economic system is possible; they could engage in commercial transactions with Russia as long as Putin ceases hostilities first," clarified Volker.
As Putin isn’t taking those steps, the chances of a Trump-Putin meeting seem to be diminishing.
Between 2017 and 2019, Volker acted as the Ukraine negotiator for Washington during the period of Putin’s final encounters with Trump in Helsinki followed by the G20 meeting in Osaka.
' Putin is attempting to stroke President Trump’s ego '
Volker states that the Russian president is attempting to appeal to President Trump’s ego by suggesting they can have a one-on-one meeting and resolve issues directly.
At the beginning of his second term, Trump stated he would meet with Putin "quite soon" following his inauguration.
"I believe President Trump views himself as a powerful figure capable of achieving such outcomes. However, he is displeased with Putin’s inability to conclude the conflict. In my opinion, this means that the summit will not take place unless the situation alters," Volker stated.
Volker told Euronews there has consequently been a significant change of heart in Washington regarding Putin’s willingness to halt his war against Ukraine. “It is clear that the US and Ukraine are in alignment in calling for a full ceasefire for 30 days. And that's a stepping-tone to a permanent ceasefire. And Putin is mocking that.”
“He's not serious about actually stopping the fighting. And you do pick up the sense now in Washington that people are recognising that and calling Putin out, if you will, saying that Russia is demanding too much and they are not accepting a ceasefire,” Volker pointed out.
Instead, the Russian president announced a three-day "unilateral ceasefire" to protect and secure the Victory Day parade in Moscow on Friday.
“Putin is not serious about a ceasefire. He's not serious about stopping his attacks. I think he wants to make a political gesture here, especially as it aligns with his military parade in Moscow”, Volker said, adding that he would be "surprised if he respects even his own ceasefire."
What will Washington's next move be?
This week, US Vice President JD Vance acknowledged that discussions aimed at ending Russia’s conflict with Ukraine have not progressed as per Washington’s original hopes.
“Right now, the Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions in order to end the conflict. We think they’re asking for too much,” Vance said.
The US administration now can "toughen its rhetoric about Russia's aggression and their unwillingness to have a ceasefire," Volker told Euronews.
This would be the first step followed by "a renewed emphasis on sanctions against Russia," possibly including secondary sanctions "against those who are helping Russia to evade the original sanctions on oil and gas and the financial industry,"
And most importantly, Washington will continue to supply arms to Ukraine. “It won't be taxpayer money. That era of appropriations of just giving taxpayer money to fund Ukraine, I think, is over. But I could see loans for Ukraine, a lend-lease policy as we did for the UK in World War II," he added.
While he didn't rule out seizing frozen Russian assets and using that to pay for arms to Ukraine, "Canada is moving in that direction, and I would not be surprised if the US does as well," Ambassador Volker concluded.