Trump says a meeting between Putin and Zelensky to end Ukraine war will happen 'very soon'

The announcement came amid intensified diplomatic efforts by Trump's administration to end the Russia-Ukraine war, now in its fifth year. 'I think with Russia, we are making a lot of progress with Russia and Ukraine,' the US President told reporters as he disembarked from Air Force One after visiting a midterm campaign rally in Texas.

'There will be a meeting set up very soon and think a lot of progress could be made. It will be with President Putin and President Zelensky.'

Diplomatic progress

The announcement follows recent diplomatic activity, including a meeting last week in Saint Petersburg between Putin and US special envoy Steve Witkoff. Witkoff had previously met with Zelensky and European leaders in Oslo.

Following these meetings, both Kyiv and Moscow voiced their willingness to resume direct talks mediated by Washington. The Kremlin had previously announced that a trilateral meeting between the three countries had been planned to take place in the United Arab Emirates in November.

Recent military developments

The diplomatic efforts come as Ukraine's military has reported significant gains in recent operations. Zelensky announced that Ukrainian forces had recaptured more than 800 square kilometers of territory in three major offensive operations this year.

This included Operation Vivaldi in the Donetsk region, where Ukrainian troops reported recapturing 277 square kilometers, and Operation Veles near Kupiansk. The campaign liberated 26 settlements across three regions – Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia.

According to Zelensky, Ukraine's Defense Forces liberated more than 200km under Operation Vivaldi and reclaimed the area near Lyman that Russia had concentrated its assaults. The operation disrupted Russia's broader plan to encircle the strategically important cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.

Putin's conditions

Putin, who ordered the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, had previously consistently rejected face-to-face talks with Zelensky and insisted Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine. However, last week he suggested talks could take place 'around November 10'.

In a televised interview aired late Thursday, the Russian President said that any trilateral talks would focus on the security arrangements of a final peace deal and not a 'short' truce. Meanwhile, Zelensky called for the discussions to take place 'as soon as possible'.

US-Russia relations

The diplomatic activity comes as the US's relationship with Russia appears to strengthen, following Trump taking over the US presidency in January 2025 with the promise to end the war in 24 hours. In recent days, Trump has cited what he said was a deal for Russia to sell diesel and efforts to reduce oil prices.

Trump's claims come after oil prices surged following US strikes on Iran in February, sparking conflict that continues today. Despite these efforts, years of attempted US-led talks have failed to stop the conflict, with repeated stalled peace talks and futile ceasefires.