President Donald Trump has made it clear that he will not engage in talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin or Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy until the Russia-Ukraine peace agreement is either finalized or nearing completion.
In a comprehensive post on Truth Social, Trump highlighted the "tremendous progress" achieved in the past week, describing it as the most significant stride towards peace since the inception of the Ukraine conflict.
He stated, "Over the past week, my team has made tremendous progress with respect to ending the War between Russia and Ukraine (A War that would have NEVER started if I were President!). Last month 25,000 soldiers died. The original 28-Point Peace Plan, which was drafted by the United States, has been fine-tuned, with additional input from both sides, and there are only a few remaining points of disagreement."
Trump further elaborated on the forthcoming steps in the peace negotiation process:
"In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians. I will be briefed on all progress made, along with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles."
He concluded his post by clarifying the conditions under which he would be willing to meet with Zelenskyy and Putin:
"I look forward to hopefully meeting with 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 matter, and lets all hope that PEACE can be accomplished AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!" he added.
According to Fox News Digital, a revised peace plan, an alteration from the initial 28 points, has reportedly received preliminary approval from both Kyiv and Washington. Moscow is currently scrutinizing the latest modifications.
On Tuesday, Ukraine consented to a peace agreement that would conclude the war with Russia, as stated by a U.S. official. Some minor aspects of the agreement are yet to be resolved, the official added.
However, Russia executed a substantial drone-and-missile strike on Kyiv overnight, resulting in at least seven fatalities and significant damage to the power infrastructure.
Despite the ongoing violence, U.S. diplomats have described the negotiations as the "closest they have been" to a potential agreement since the war's commencement.
In the meantime, French President Emmanuel Macron stated on Tuesday that France and its EU partners are nearing the finalization of a plan to support Ukraine and secure a peace that is "serious" and grounded in international law.
Following a virtual meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, Macron also stated that "all the countries around the table want peace, but they want a peace that is just and lasting."
He addressed territorial and security issues while expressing hope to prevent future aggression and warned that renewed Russian strikes on civilian and energy infrastructure demonstrate that "on the ground, the reality is the exact opposite of any genuine desire for peace."
Macron outlined the coalition's priorities, which include escalating sanctions on Russia to exert pressure so that "it agrees to negotiate."
"This includes our sanctions, the U.S. sanctions coming into force, and our actions against the "shadow fleet" involved in illicit oil shipments worldwide," Macron said.
He also underscored two key initiatives: finalizing an EU solution for frozen Russian assets and establishing long-term security guarantees to ensure any ceasefire is enforceable and durable.
"We all support the pursuit of a peace plan, so this work must continue, and we are coordinating closely with the United States to move forward on a framework that could be acceptable," he added.
Macron concluded, "The next few days will allow us to finalize in very concrete terms and to complete these security guarantees. This is essential for Ukraine, essential for negotiating a credible peace, and also essential to maintain pressure on Russia."
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