US President Donald Trump stated on 3/12, "I think they had a very good meeting with President Vladimir Putin." He added, "What will that yield? I cannot say yet, because both sides need to cooperate."

Trump's comments followed inquiries about a 2/12 meeting at the Kremlin between President Putin and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law. The American representatives traveled to Moscow to present an updated peace plan, initially proposed by Washington and negotiated with Kiev, designed to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

"President Putin wants to end the war. That is their feeling," the White House chief stated. "He wants a deal."

According to President Trump, Ukraine "basically agreed" to the US proposal. He suggested Kiev should have accepted a deal in February, following his White House meeting with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.

US President Donald Trump at the White House on 3/12. Photo: AFP

On 3/12, the Kremlin affirmed Russia's readiness to negotiate with the US repeatedly until a resolution for the Ukraine conflict is achieved.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted, "Some things are acceptable, but there are also unacceptable things; this is a normal process to reach compromise." He did not specify which aspects of the proposed agreement Russia accepted or rejected.

Peskov added that the meeting marked "the first direct exchange of views between the two sides." He expressed Moscow's expectation that Washington would also maintain confidentiality regarding the process to facilitate progress in peace negotiations.

This new round of talks occurred as NATO pledged hundreds of millions of USD for US-supplied weapons to Ukraine. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated they must ensure "Ukraine is in the best position to continue fighting."

President Zelensky indicated that a path to peace had opened, emphasizing that current negotiation efforts require increased pressure on Russia.

Nhu Tam (AFP, Reuters)