WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump wants to hold a meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as soon as possible, US Secretar...
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump wants to hold a meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as soon as possible, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said.
In an interview with CBS News, the top US diplomat noted that currently, the US and Russian sides must determine when and where such a meeting will take place and its main topics.
"The President has made that offer already publicly. The mechanics of setting that kind of meeting up would require a little bit of work. So I can't say that's being planned as we speak, in terms of picking a site and a date, but the President wants to do it. He wants to do it as soon as feasible. I think the Russian side has also expressed a willingness to do it. And so now, it's just a question of bringing everyone together and figuring out where and when that meeting will happen and what it will be about," he noted.
"Ultimately, one of the things that could help break this logjam, perhaps, the only thing that can, is a direct conversation between President Trump and Vladimir Putin, and he's already openly expressed a desire and a belief that that needs to happen, and hopefully that will be worked out soon as well," Rubio added.
Earlier, Trump wrote on the Truth Social network that he had a phone conversation with Putin planned at 10 a.m. (5 p.m. Moscow time) on May 19. The US president said that he intended to discuss the Ukrainian settlement and trade. Trump added that, following the conversation with a Russian leader, he will speak with Vladimir Zelensky and NATO leaders.
The most recent phone conversation between Putin and Trump was held on March 18.
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