President Donald Trump has stated that he will not meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky until the emerging Russia-Ukraine peace deal is completed or in its final stages.
In a lengthy post shared on Truth Social Tuesday, Trump emphasized that “tremendous progress” had been made over the past week, calling it the most significant move toward peace since the start of the war in Ukraine.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have both met separately with US President Donald Trump. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP; Christian Bruna/Getty)
He wrote: “Over the past week, my team has made tremendous progress toward ending the war between Russia and Ukraine (a war that would NEVER have started if I were president!). Last month, 25,000 soldiers died. The original 28-point peace plan drafted by the United States has been refined, with additional input from both sides, and there are still only a few areas of disagreement.”
Trump continued by outlining the next steps in the negotiation process:
“In hopes of finalizing this peace plan, I have instructed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will meet with the Ukrainians. I will be briefed on any progress made along with Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.”
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo at the State Department on June 27, 2025 in Washington. (AP/Mark Schiefelbein)
He concluded his post by explaining when he would be willing to meet Zelensky and Putin:
“I look forward to hopefully meeting President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this war is FINAL or in its final stages.”
“Thank you for your attention to this very important issue, and let us all hope that PEACE can be achieved AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!” he added.
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Trump will coordinate talks between Putin and Zelensky after the White House meetings on Monday, August 18, 2025. (Getty Images)
A revised peace framework, modified from the original 28 points, has reportedly received preliminary acceptance from both Kiev and Washington. Moscow is currently assessing the latest revisions.
Some minor details of the deal still need to be ironed out, the official said.
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But overnight, Russia launched a major drone-and-missile attack on Kiev, killing at least seven people and damaging energy infrastructure.
Despite the ongoing violence, US diplomats described the negotiations as “the closest to a possible agreement since the start of the war”.
