Is a Putin-Trump-Zelenskyy trilateral in the works?

A potential diplomatic breakthrough to end the war in Ukraine may be on the horizon as US President Donald Trump hinted at a possible meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as early as next week with trilateral talks involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also under consideration.

The White House on Wednesday confirmed that Moscow had expressed interest in a face-to-face with Trump, and preparations for a summit were already underway. Speaking to reporters, Trump said there was “a very good chance” of meeting Putin soon, adding, “We had some very good talks with President Putin today… there’s a very good chance that we could be ending – the ending, the road ending, the end of that road.”

The comments followed a meeting in Moscow between Putin and Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, which both sides described as productive. While Trump stopped short of calling the talks a breakthrough, he said they had achieved “great progress”. Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov echoed the sentiment, calling the exchange “useful and constructive”, while noting that further discussions would depend on Witkoff’s report to Trump.

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According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, Trump is open to separate meetings with both Putin and Zelenskyy. The possibility of trilateral talks involving the three leaders is being explored and several locations including the United Arab Emirates are under discussion with the first meeting potentially taking place within two weeks.

The diplomatic move comes as Trump tightens economic pressure on Russia. A Friday deadline looms for new secondary sanctions aimed at countries that continue trade with Moscow including possible tariffs on Chinese imports.

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Earlier this week, Trump announced a 25% tariff hike on Indian goods over New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil, raising total duties to 50%. He warned that similar measures could be imposed on China next.

“We did it with India. We’re doing it probably with a couple of others. One of them could be China,” Trump said.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin has signalled openness to a meeting with Zelenskyy. “I have nothing against meeting Zelenskyy,” Putin said, while cautioning that “certain conditions must be created,” and that such conditions do not yet exist. Nonetheless, the Russian president acknowledged mutual interest in meeting Trump, and indicated that a summit hosted by the UAE would be suitable.

Zelenskyy, for his part, said the pressure campaign against Russia appeared to be yielding results. In his nightly address, he said Moscow seemed more “inclined” to a ceasefire, though he remained wary of the Kremlin’s intentions. “The pressure on them works. But the main thing is that they do not deceive us in the details — neither us nor the US,” he said.

Zelenskyy had earlier extended an invitation to Putin for peace talks in Istanbul in May, an offer that was not accepted by the Russian side.

If realised, a Trump–Putin–Zelenskyy summit would mark the most significant diplomatic engagement on Ukraine since the war began in 2022. It would also be the first meeting between a sitting or former US\ president and both leaders of the warring nations potentially shaping the trajectory of the conflict in the critical months ahead.