Trump says he’s willing to meet Putin ‘soon’
US President Donald Trump has said he would “very much like” to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin “soon” in order to end the ongoing Ukraine conflict. It is not just important from the standpoint of the global economy, but also to prevent further human suffering, he told the World Economic Forum in Davos via teleconference on Thursday.
“Millions of lives are being wasted,” Trump claimed, referring to the ongoing hostilities and calling the conflict “horrible.” “I am not talking economy, I am not talking economics, I am not talking about natural resources, I’m just talking about so many young people being killed in this war,” he added.
The source of the figures used by Trump is unclear. In December, Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov said Ukraine had suffered almost 1 million battlefield casualties in total since the start of the conflict in February 2022. Kiev has claimed that Moscow had lost over 800,000 troops as of January 15. Neither side has commented on its own losses.
During his speech, the US president predicted that “a lot of good things” would happen to America’s “allies and beyond.” He then went on to say that “one thing [that] is very important is [that] I really would like to be able to meet with President Putin soon to get that war ended.”
The day before, Trump issued a thinly-veiled ultimatum to Moscow, calling on it to end the Ukraine conflict and strike a “deal” or face new sanctions. He maintained that he was “not looking to hurt Russia,” and professed that he loved Russian people.
The Kremlin responded to the statement by saying that it saw “nothing new” in yet another threat of sanctions made by Washington. During his first presidential term, Trump had often resorted to sanctions, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Thursday, adding that the US president “likes such methods.”
Moscow is still ready for an equal and respectful dialogue, Peskov said, adding that Trump had engaged in that kind of exchange with Putin during his first term in office. Now, Russia is waiting for similar signals but has not seen any so far, according to the spokesman.
Russia has also repeatedly stated throughout the conflict that it was ready for peace negotiations at any time, while accusing Kiev of refusing to talk. Moscow also repeatedly criticized the continued Western military aid for Ukraine, arguing that it was only prolonging the conflict and extending human suffering. An ever deeper Western engagement into the conflict also posed a risk of a direct clash between Russia and NATO, Moscow warned.
