US President Donald Trump is withdrawing from peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, the British newspaper The Guardian wrote on Thursday, citing US administration officials.
According to these sources, Trump is currently withdrawing from relations with the Ukrainian and Russian sides so as not to play any direct role in organizing a meeting between the leaders of these two countries. “Thereby (the US president – PAP) is withdrawing from negotiations aimed at ending the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” the Guardian reported.
“According to Trump, the next step in efforts to end the war in Ukraine is a bilateral meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky,” the officials told the newspaper.
The American leader recently told his advisers that he intends to hold a three-way meeting with Zelensky and Putin only after they meet without the participation of third parties. As the newspaper noted, “it is unclear whether this first summit will take place, but Trump does not intend to participate.”
As recalled, in a telephone interview with journalist Mark Levin on WABC radio on Tuesday, the US president said he believed it would be better for Putin and Zelensky to meet without him. “I just want to see what happens at the meeting. They're in the process of arranging it, and we'll see what happens,” he said.
In an interview with the Guardian, a senior US official described Trump's situation as “wait and see” regarding a possible meeting between Putin and Zelensky. The newspaper also claims that the White House does not yet have a shortlist of locations where the meeting could take place.
From London Marta Zabłocka (PAP)
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