(AFP) – US President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are scheduled to speak this week, officials said on Sunday that they would accept that Washington and Kiev's European allies would embrace a ceasefire in the three-year war.
The US proposed a halt in the war battle this week after talks in Saudi Arabia, and Kiev accepted the proposal.
However, Putin has not given a clear answer, instead listing a set of conditions and poses “serious questions” around the proposition.
Trump's envoy over the conflict, Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin for hours a few days ago, told CNN in a television interview that he thought “the two presidents will have a really good positive argument this week.”
Previously, Moscow said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, and the pair discussed “specific aspects of implementation of understanding” at the US Russia summit in Saudi Arabia last month.
Ukrainian Volodymia Zelensky on Saturday accused the Kremlin of not wanting to end the war, and Moscow first warned him that he “want to improve the situation on the battlefield.”
Since Moscow began its invasion in February 2022, Riyadh Gathering in February was the first high-level meeting between the US and Russia.
“Sergei Lavrov and Marco Rubio have agreed to maintain contact,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said on Saturday that the pair “discussed the next steps” in Ukraine.
She also said Rubio and Lavrov “agree to continue working towards restoring communication between the US and Russia.”
The call to Lavrov-Rubio comes hours after the UK held a virtual summit in Ukraine. Kiel's Prime Minister, Preferred, accused Putin of “slurping his leg” in the ceasefire.
“Yes, but “” from Russia is not enough,” Starmer said.
The next day, Kiev said Russia launched 90 Iranian-made Shahed drones into nine Ukrainian regions.
In his response to the ceasefire earlier this week, Putin said the initiative would benefit Ukraine, not primarily Russian troops.
He raised “serious questions” about the initiative.
The proposal came from Russia, which occupies Swas in southern and eastern Ukraine, gaining momentum in some areas in front.
They expelled Ukrainian troops from parts of the Kursk region. There, Kiev wants to maintain Russian territory as a potential tip for negotiations in future negotiations.
Putin said he wanted to talk to Trump about Moscow's concerns over the phone.
Zelensky on Saturday said that by disagreeing with a ceasefire, Putin also opposed Trump, who overtured Russia, and accused Moscow of trying to find a way to stop the war.
He accused Putin of “liing about how a ceasefire appears to be too complicated.”
Ukraine said on Sunday that one person was killed in a Russian drone strike in Izum city. This was in the Kalkiv region, which fell to Russia at the start of the Ukraine invasion before being taken away by Kiev's army.
