Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview that he was willing to meet with Trump to discuss topics of interest to both Moscow and the United States, including the Kremlin's nearly three-year-old invasion of Ukraine.
“Given today's realities, it would be better if we could calmly discuss all areas of interest to both the United States and Russia,” Putin said. During an interview on Friday Linked with Russian TV channel “Russia 24”.
“We are ready. But again, of course, this mainly depends on the decisions and choices of the current American administration,” he told reporter Pavel Zarubin.
President Putin praised President Trump as “realistic” and “smart,” but also claimed: Russia may not have invaded Ukraine if President Trump is re-elected for a second consecutive term in November 2020.
President Putin said, “I have always built a businesslike, pragmatic, and trusting relationship with the current president.'' “And I have to agree that if his victory had not been stolen in 2020, there might not have been a Ukraine crisis in 2022.”
Earlier this week, President Trump threatened to impose sanctions and tariffs on Russia if a deal to end the war in Eastern Europe was not reached “soon.”
“That being said, I'm going to do a big favor to Russia and President Putin, whose economy is in the doldrums. Settle it now and stop this stupid war! It's only going to get worse.” ” President Trump said on Truth Social.
Later, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump told attendees he wanted to meet with Putin “soon” to discuss ending the conflict.
“We really should stop it. I think we've had a lot of processes going on in the Middle East as well, and I think it's going to go pretty well,” Trump said, adding that Ukraine “is ready to make a deal. There is,” he added.
For months, the president has called for a ceasefire and urged the two countries to negotiate an end to the war. Trump has previously said that if he were president in 2022, there would be no conflict, and during his campaign he said he could have ended the war within 24 hours.
