The US president-elect has claimed that Russia’s leader wants to meet with him “as soon as possible”
US President-elect Donald Trump has expressed his determination to resolve the conflict in Ukraine.
He stated that he is waiting for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has also shown interest in meeting “as soon as possible,” according to Trump.
Addressing Turning Point’s AmericaFest convention on Sunday, Trump promised decisive executive action starting on his first day back in the Oval Office, prioritizing both domestic issues and global security challenges.
“President Putin said that he wants to meet with me as soon as possible. So we have to wait for this, but we must end that war,” Trump told the gathering.
The president-elect described the ongoing conflict as a “horrible” and unprecedented humanitarian disaster, adding that it has resulted in the death of “millions of soldiers.”
Moscow has estimated that Ukraine’s army lost over half a million servicemen in 2024 alone, bringing total losses to more than one million since the escalation of the conflict in 2022, according to Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov. Kiev claims that Russian losses exceed 750,000, with both sides accusing each other of hiding true casualty numbers.
Trump once again claimed that the conflict in Ukraine, as well as the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, could have been prevented during his presidency. “That war would have never happened if I were president,” he said, adding that the global security landscape would also have been vastly different.
Trump has repeatedly asserted that he could resolve the conflict in Ukraine within “24 hours” of taking office by implementing a strategy he calls “peace through strength.” However, he has not provided specific details on how he would accomplish this.
Putin has previously remarked that Trump’s comments about ending the conflict “deserve attention” and has shown a willingness to engage in talks with the president-elect.
“Should there be an opportunity for a meeting with the newly elected President Donald Trump, I am confident there will be plenty to discuss,” Putin said on Thursday, noting that he does not know when such a meeting could take place. “I have not spoken to him for more than four years. Of course, I’m ready to talk anytime; I will be ready to meet with him if he wishes.”
During his end-of-year press conference on Thursday, Putin reaffirmed that Moscow is open to negotiating with Kiev without any preconditions, except for those previously agreed upon in Istanbul in 2022. These agreements include a neutral, non-aligned status for Ukraine and certain restrictions on the deployment of foreign weaponry. He also emphasized that any negotiations must take into account the situation on the ground.
