By Gao Yun
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, Jan. 21 that he will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Switzerland, adding that Russia and Ukraine have reached a point where a peace agreement to end the war is possible, and that a ceasefire deal is “very close.”
Trump made the remarks during a discussion following a speech in Davos, Switzerland, to world leaders and business executives. He said he is engaging with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is seeking an agreement to end the nearly four-year-long war. Trump also stated that he believes Zelenskiy is ready to reach an agreement.
Regarding the timing of the meeting with Zelenskiy, Trump initially said it would take place later Wednesday, but a source familiar with Zelenskiy’s schedule disputed that. Trump later revised the timing, saying the meeting is planned for Thursday.
Ukraine will mark the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24. Trump said he had originally expected a peace agreement to be reached sooner, but noted there is “abnormal hatred” between the two leaders. Last week, he told Reuters that Zelenskiy is the main obstacle to a deal. However, on Wednesday, he stated that Washington is getting closer to facilitating a ceasefire agreement.
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During a Q&A session after his speech, Trump said: “I believe they have now reached the stage where they can sit down and make a deal. If they can’t, then they (the Russian and Ukrainian leaders) are being foolish.”
US to meet with Putin
Meanwhile, Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said Wednesday that he will meet with Putin on Thursday to discuss issues related to a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement, confirming that Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will accompany him.
On Jan. 20, Witkoff and Kushner met with Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev at the “House of the U.S.” in Davos. Both sides gave positive assessments of the two-hour meeting, which explored ending the Russia-Ukraine war, Ukraine’s future, and whether a U.S.-brokered peace agreement could hold.
To facilitate peace between Russia and Ukraine, the U.S. has held multiple talks with Russia and separately discussed proposals to end the war with Ukraine and European leaders, but no agreement has been reached. Ukraine’s European allies worry that the U.S. may ask Ukraine to make territorial concessions.
Currently, Russia controls about 19 percent of Ukrainian territory and claims Crimea, Donbas, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia as Russian territory. Ukraine insists it will never accept this, and nearly all countries recognize these regions as part of Ukraine.
The U.S. stated that the Russia-Ukraine war has caused a total of one million casualties among both countries’ men, though neither side has released official casualty figures. Trump has repeatedly emphasized that he cannot bear to see more deaths.
In addition, Trump said that Putin has accepted an invitation to join the Gaza “Board of Peace,” an initiative he is promoting.
The Trump administration has reached out to many global leaders to join the organization, which will be responsible for post-conflict governance and reconstruction in Gaza.