 "US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the tarmac after they arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025.- AFP")
Vladimir Putin on Monday told US President Donald Trump that he was willing to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
In the midst of his meeting with Zelenskyy and other European leaders, Trump on Monday took a break to dial Putin and press him to meet the Ukrainian leader.
Rubio said that while he did not expect a peace deal to be signed in the first Putin-Zelenskyy meeting, the fact that the two leaders are going to sit for talks would be a big deal in itself.
“But just the fact that Putin is saying, sure, I’ll meet with Zelenskyy – that’s a big deal. I mean, I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room best friends. I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room with a peace deal. But I think the fact that people are now talking to each other, this wasn’t happening for three and a half years. This was a stalemated war of death and destruction,” Rubio told Fox News’ Jesse Watters on Monday.
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As part of his efforts to end the war in Ukraine, Trump has sought a trilateral meeting of Ukrainian, Russian, and American leaders.
Rubio said that the Monday’s summit at the White House that involved Trump, Zelenskyy, and the leaders of most powerful European leaders —British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, European Union (EU) chief Ursula von der Leyen, and Nato chief Mark Rutte— was the “first time where there seems to be some movement” to end the war.
What came from the summit is that Trump suggested that Zelenskyy and Putin meet and the administration has been working on that now, said Rubio.
He further said, “And then if that goes well, hopefully the next meeting will be a meeting between Presidents Putin, Trump, and Zelenskyy, where we hope to finalize a deal. We’re not there yet, but that’s what we’re aiming towards and that’s one of the things that was discussed today, is how to get to that point.”
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More ShortsBoth sides will have to give something, says Rubio
Rubio said that the Trump administration is looking at a give and take approach to resolve the conflict. But the question remains what Russia might be willing to offer in exchange for concessions from Ukraine.
Putin has demanded the entire Donbas region , not just the surrender of the area that Russia already controls. As large swathes of the region, which has been industrial, military, and logistical hub of Ukraine, Zelenskyy will find surrendering it a hard-sell domestically. It will also leave him vulnerable to any future aggression. But Rubio was confident that “one side is not going to get 100 per cent here”.
“Each side is going to have to make some concessions. And obviously, land or where you draw those lines – where the war stops – is going to be part of that conversation. And it’s not easy, and maybe it’s not even fair, but it’s what it takes in order to bring about an end to a war. And that’s been true in every war. The only wars that don’t end that way are the ones that have unconditional surrender by one side or the other, and we’re not going to see that in this conflict,” said Rubio.