The Russian delegation is ready to work intensively to prepare the talks, Yury Ushakov has said
Moscow and Washington will work to create the conditions for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, according Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov. The comments followed high-level talks between Russia and the US in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
The discussions in Riyadh, the first such meeting since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, aimed to normalize relations between Moscow and Washington and lay the groundwork for peace talks in the Ukraine conflict.
According to Ushakov, the delegations discussed a possible meeting between Putin and Trump. The aide was also asked to comment on an earlier report by Bloomberg, which claimed that the two leaders could meet as early as next week.
”That is unlikely,” Ushakov told a reporter for Russia’s Channel One network. He suggested that intensive work was required by the delegations of both countries before a presidential meeting could happen.
“We are ready for [that work] but at the moment it’s too early to talk about specific dates,” stated Ushakov.
US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz has also been quoted as saying that no date has been set for a meeting between Trump and Putin, although both sides are intent on making it happen.
Following a phone conversation with Putin last week, Trump indicated that he could “probably” meet his Russian counterpart in person in the near future, suggesting it could happen in Saudi Arabia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier said there were no details thus far regarding a planned meeting between the two leaders, noting that this would require thorough preparation.
