1:00President Donald Trump in Turnberry, Scotland, July 28, 2025 and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, July 27, 2025.Getty Images/AP
Following indications from White House officials on Wednesday that President Donald Trump might engage in a summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin as early as next week, they initially insisted that no meeting would occur unless Putin also consented to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
However, just a few hours later, the conditions for the face-to-face meeting seemed to change. By Thursday afternoon, Trump stated he could meet with Putin without any prerequisites.
"No, he doesn't," Trump responded when questioned about whether Putin would need to agree to a meeting with Zelenskyy for the summit to proceed.
"They would like to meet with me, and I'll do whatever I can to stop the killing," the president added.
President Donald Trump speaks about the economy in the Oval Office of the White House, Aug. 7, 2025, in Washington.Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Earlier that day, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that it remained Trump's preference to include Zelenskyy in the discussion.
Nevertheless, U.S. officials informed ABC News that the Trump administration has been considering the advantages a one-on-one with Putin could offer and is becoming increasingly inclined to pursue bilateral discussions with the Russian president if the White House concludes it can secure concessions from the Kremlin that would warrant the engagement.
President Donald Trump in Turnberry, Scotland, July 28, 2025 and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, July 27, 2025.Getty Images/AP
However, conducting such a summit is a risk that may provide Moscow exactly what it desires before the two leaders even meet.
Based on public remarks from President Trump, official statements from the Kremlin, and U.S. officials knowledgeable about the situation, Putin has been eager for a conversation with Trump for months, expressing his wish to meet even prior to Trump’s inauguration in January.
Earlier on Thursday, Putin asserted in a video shared on the Kremlin's Telegram channel that there was mutual interest in holding a summit "shown on both sides."
"Who initiated it first is no longer important," Putin mentioned, adding he was also willing to meet with Zelenskyy provided that "certain conditions" were fulfilled beforehand.
An adviser to Putin quickly responded to initial reports about a possible summit with Trump, announcing ahead of the White House that the meeting would occur "in the coming days" and would take place in the UAE. (The Trump administration has not confirmed that the summit will definitely occur and refutes that a date or location has been established.)
If a summit does take place and the Trump administration fails to achieve clear outcomes, it would represent a victory solely for Putin, according to Ambassador Bill Taylor, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who also served as chargé d'affaires during Trump’s first administration.
"It's only a success for Putin. I don't consider it a success for the West, the United States, or President Trump," Taylor remarked. "Putin aims to reinstate himself as a prominent figure. He strives to escape this isolation. He wants to cease being viewed as a pariah."
Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, stated that a meeting with Trump would signify "the end of diplomatic isolation for Putin."
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
