Putin ally claims deal to end Ukraine war ‘close’ after Trump meeting cancelled | World | News
A senior Kremlin official has suggested a breakthrough on ending the war in Ukraine is within reach. Kirill Dmitriev said he believes Russia, Ukraine and the United States are “quite close” in striking a deal to end the full-scale conflict approaching its fifth year.
It comes days after Donald Trump cancelled face-to-face talks with Vladimir Putin in Hungary claiming he did not want to have a “wasted meeting”. Mr Dmitriev, the Russian president’s special envoy for investment and economic cooperation, said the meeting had not been called off and insisted the leaders are expected to meet at a later date. Speaking on Friday, he said: “I believe Russia and the US and Ukraine are actually quite close to a diplomatic solution.”
Mr Dmitriev was speaking to CNN after arriving in Washington ahead of talks with US officials.
Reports suggest he will meet the US President’s special envoy Steve Witkoff in Florida on Saturday.
Mr Trump has grown increasingly frustrated, particularly with Russia, over the slow progress of Ukraine peace talks.
He has questioned whether the Russian president actually wants to end the war and on Wednesday, in a major policy shift, slapped sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies.
Mr Trump has proposed halting the war along the current frontlines.
Europe has backed the idea, as has Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky who described it as a “good compromise”.
Mr Dmitriev told CNN: “It’s a big move by President Zelensky to already acknowledge that it’s about battle lines.
“You know, his previous position was that Russia should leave completely — so actually, I think we are reasonably close to a diplomatic solution that can be worked out.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban — who is an ally of both Mr Trump and Putin — on Saturday said the cancelled meeting between the two leaders in Budapest will eventually go ahead.
“The timing is uncertain, but it will happen,” he said.
Mr Trump earlier this week said he decided to call off the talks because “it didn’t feel right”.
Expressing his frustrations, the US President said: “It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get. So I cancelled it, but we’ll do it in the future.
“Every time I speak to Vladimir, I have good conversations and then they don’t go anywhere. They just don’t go anywhere.”
On Saturday, he said he will only meet Mr Putin if he knows a deal can be agreed.
Officials said at least four people were killed and 20 were wounded in Russian missile and drone attacks across Ukraine overnight.
