President Donald Trump is likely to talk to Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin this week.
“I think the two presidents will have a really good positive argument this week,” Witkoff told Jake Tapper on CNN’s “Affiliation Status,” and said he hopes to reach a ceasefire contract within weeks.
The conversation between the two leaders follows a late-night meeting between Witkov and Putin in Moscow last week. He refused to detail what situation Putin was putting into a ceasefire, but admitted that Russia’s territory within Ukraine is part of the debate that ends the war.
Fixed Point: The issue of land concessions is one of the most sensitive topics in ongoing peace negotiations. American officials have said Ukraine needs to give up territory to end the war, and Putin has made it a condition for him to enter a ceasefire.
However, the recognized territory has long been a non-starter for Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky, and some European leaders have expressed concern about Putin’s appearance of rewarding his invasion.
Speaking on Sunday, an aide to Trump said ongoing peace talks were productive, but he didn’t say how the issue of territorial concession would be resolved. Witkov said that Russian leaders “accept President Trump’s philosophy.”
What Trump said about the discussion: In an interview released Friday, Trump said he expects to know “a little more” by Monday about a possible ceasefire agreement between Russia and Ukraine. Over the weekend, Trump said the meeting in Moscow was “very productive” and after Witkov’s meeting in Russia, all the signs looked “very good.”
This post was updated on Sunday with details of Witkoff’s interview on CNN. CNN’s Alejandra Jaramillo and Sam Waldenberg contributed to this post.
