(AFP) – The top US and Russian diplomats discussed on Saturday the “next step” to end the war in Ukraine, hours after Kiev's allies agreed to put pressure on Moscow.
Despite recent tensions between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian counterpart Voldy Zelensky, Kiev, in principle, agreed to an unconditional ceasefire for US rulers if Moscow halted its attack in eastern Ukraine.
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin has not agreed to a ceasefire and instead set the conditions required by the US agreement with Ukraine.
The proposal for a ceasefire by Trump's team comes as Russia has momentum in many parts of the Ukrainian front.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on Saturday to “discuss the next steps,” state Department spokesman Tammy Bruce said.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has made an epic settlement with Putin, underlining his 3-year-old desire to end the conflict.
The statement did not provide details as to when the next round for US Russia, hosted by Saudi Arabia, will begin.
However, Rubio and Lavrov “agree to continue working towards restoring communication between the US and Russia,” Bruce added.
The call came after a virtual summit hosted by London on Saturday.
In these talks, British Prime Minister Kiel Starmer told 26 fellow leaders that they should focus on ways to strengthen Ukraine, protect a ceasefire and maintain pressure on Moscow.
Priority was that Putin ultimately said, “We have to come to the table.”
“Putin is about to be delayed. He says there must be some painstaking research before a ceasefire occurs,” he added.
Military leaders from around 30 countries will be held in Paris on March 11, discussing plans for Ukrainian peacekeeping forces and will meet again in the UK on Thursday.
On Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron called for uniform action to ensure Russia accepts the proposed ceasefire.
“This is a moment of truth. If Russia does not commit to peacefully and sincerely peace, President Trump will step up sanctions and retaliation, which will completely change the dynamics,” Macron told a French regional paper in an interview posted late Saturday.
“Russia must respond clearly, and the pressure must be clear in conjunction with the US to get this ceasefire,” he said in a statement to AFP.
Zelensky warned that Russia wanted to achieve a “more powerful position” military-wise than a ceasefire
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Russia is “a willing to support a ceasefire that leads to just and lasting peace.”
However, Zelensky warned that more than three years after Russia invaded Ukraine, he wanted to achieve a “stronger position” before the ceasefire.
“They want to improve the situation on the battlefield,” Zelensky told a Kiev journalist.
Priority and Macron say they are willing to put British and French forces on the ground in Ukraine, but it is not clear whether other countries are keen to do the same.
Russia rejected the idea of foreign soldiers acting as peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.
But Macron said on Saturday: “If Ukraine asks the allied forces to be in its territory, it doesn't depend on Russia whether or not they accept it.”
Starmer welcomes offers to support the coalition and says it will raise the prospects that some countries can contribute to logistics and surveillance.
Trump appointed Keith Kellogg as Ukrainian envoy on Saturday.
Kellogg, a former national security adviser during Trump's first term, was previously said to be a special envoy for both Ukraine and Russia.
However, he was removed from recent consultations in Saudi Arabia to end the war. US NBC News cited a Russian official whom Putin said he thought he was a procrane.
The battle continued, and Moscow reclaimed its land strip in the Kursk border area this week.
Three civilians were injured in Russia on Saturday night when Ukrainian drones attacked the town of Gubkin and the village of Dorgo in the Belgorod region, officials said on Telegram.
On the Ukrainian side, residential buildings sparked a fire and damaged the house on Saturday evening in the northern region of Chernichv, authorities said.
