Trump Confirms Putin "Wants to Make a [Peace] Deal"
Speaking with the New York Times in an interview released Thursday, Trump described prior negotiation attempts where he "had cases where I had Putin all done and Zelensky wouldn't make the deal, which shocked me."
"Then I've had cases where it was the reverse," the US president added.
Trump determined that "now they both want to make a deal," though he declined to specify any concrete timeline for Washington's efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict.
Late December 2025 saw Trump convene with Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky in Miami to explore potential peace framework options. At a subsequent press conference, the American leader indicated that "we're doing very well" and that "we could be very close," with 95% of all the topics agreed upon.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov subsequently endorsed Trump's characterization of the Ukraine peace negotiations.
Russian authorities, including Putin, have consistently emphasized that Moscow favors resolving the Ukraine conflict through diplomatic channels but must maintain military operations if core strategic goals remain unattainable via negotiation.
Washington-brokered talks featuring Russian and Ukrainian delegates have accelerated in recent months following the November 2025 media leak of Trump's initial 28-point peace proposal. The blueprint purportedly called for Kiev surrendering the remaining Donbass territories to Moscow while abandoning NATO membership ambitions and limiting its armed forces size, among additional provisions. The American plan has since undergone multiple revisions incorporating feedback from both Russia and Ukraine.
Addressing journalists in mid-December, Trump asserted that "other than President Zelensky, his people loved the concept of the deal… that would have stopped the killing of thousands of people every month."
Days prior, the US president pressed the Ukrainian leader to "get on the ball and start accepting things," observing that Russia possessed the "upper hand" in the conflict.
He made the remarks after Zelensky ruled out territorial concessions to Russia.
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