FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky sat face to face in one of the halls of a Vatican basilica to discuss a possible ceasefire, after which the US president accused his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of not wanting to "stop the war."
The White House described Trump's meeting with the Ukrainian leader before Pope Francis' funeral as "very productive," while Zelensky said on X that the conversation with the US president was symbolic and had "the potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results."
It was the first time Zelensky and Trump met face to face after a frosty February meeting at the White House, where Trump and US Vice President JD Vance berated the Ukrainian leader and accused him of ungratefulness for US aid.
Trump later posted a social media post criticizing Putin. “There was no reason for Putin to launch missiles at civilian areas, cities and towns, over the past few days,” he posted on Truth Social.
“This makes me think that maybe he doesn't want to stop the war, he's just affecting me and should be dealt with differently, perhaps through 'secondary sanctions?' A lot of people are dying!!!” the US president wrote.
In an effort to end the fighting between Ukraine and Russia, Washington is engaging in intensive mediation between the two countries, at war since Russia's invasion in 2022.
On Friday, Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow for three hours to discuss Washington's peace proposal. Trump said "most of the major points are agreed upon," without providing further details. He called for a meeting between Kiev and Moscow's leadership to sign a ceasefire agreement, which he said was "very close."
Despite Trump's desire for a deal, significant differences remain between the US vision of peace and what Ukraine and its European allies have deemed acceptable conditions for a ceasefire.
Two sets of peace plans published by Reuters on Friday showed that the US is proposing to Moscow to retain territory it has captured, including the strategic Crimean peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
"Our position is unchanged," the Ukrainian president told reporters in Kiev, adding that "the Ukrainian constitution states that all temporarily occupied territories belong to Ukraine."
It is also unclear whether Moscow will agree to the US peace deal, which is seen as offering significant concessions to Russia.
On Saturday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said all Ukrainian troops had been forced to withdraw from Russia's Kursk region, a key target for Moscow. Ukrainian officials disputed the claim.
The technical details of a ceasefire agreement still need to be determined, including how Western sanctions imposed on Russia would be lifted and what kind of security guarantees would be offered to Ukraine.
Trump acknowledged on Friday that the talks were "very fragile" and he has warned that the US would halt its mediation efforts if the two sides did not reach an agreement soon.
Fighting continues despite mediation efforts, and the Kremlin blames Ukraine for a car bomb that killed a top Russian general near Moscow on Friday. Kiev has not commented on the incident, the latest in a string of killings of Russian military officials over the past three years.
A day earlier, Russia carried out its deadliest attack in months on Ukraine, launching 70 missiles and 145 drones, mostly towards Kiev.
The attack prompted Trump to attack Putin on social media. "I am not happy with the Russian attacks on Kiev. Unnecessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, stop it! 5,000 soldiers a week are dying. Let's finish the Peace Treaty!" Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday. /Adapted from Pamphlet/
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