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Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are expected to make an appeal about the Russian-Ukraine War in the future week, said an American official because Washington is trying to negotiate a cease-fire contract.
Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff told CNN on Sunday that he had a “positive” meeting with Putin and that the Russian and Ukrainian parties “are much closer” in negotiations.
“I expect there to be a call with the two presidents this week and we also continue to get involved and have a conversation with the Ukrainians,” he said.
The comments arise after the United States and its G7 partners warned Moscow on Friday that it could extend sanctions and use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, while Trump seeks to win Putin to his cease-fire proposal. The joint declaration followed a week in which kyiv signed the 30 -day truce, but Moscow reported reluctance to do so immediately.
Witkoff told CNN that he had witnessed improvements in the cease-fire negotiations. The sides were previously “separate kilometers,” he said.
After talks in Saudi Arabia, led by the US National Security Councilor Mike Waltz and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as well as Witkoff’s “equally positive” meeting with Putin, “we have reduced the differences between them and now we are sitting at the table,” he added.
The Embassy of the White House and Russia in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comments.
The envoy told CBS that negotiations were complex, involving several angles and a large strip of territory, including a “main confrontation area” in the Kursk region, a nuclear reactor providing electricity to Ukraine and access to ports.
“There are so many elements for the implementation of a ceasefire here,” said Witkoff, adding that it “implies how to bring people not to fight between them on a border of 2,000 kilometers”.
He also seemed to reject a statement made by French President Emmanuel Macron, who argued that Russia “does not seem to sincere peace”.
Witkoff refused to comment on Macron’s remarks, but added: “I think it’s unfortunate when people do this kind of assessments, and they don’t necessarily have knowledge of the first hand. . . I saw a constructive effort over a long period to discuss the details of what’s going on in the field. ”
Asked when he thinks there will be an agreement, Witkoff cited Trump, who said it would take weeks.
“I do not disagree with him,” the envoy told CNN.
