Trump asks Putin to hold fire as Ukraine urges US to step up pressure on Moscow
Washington: The United States says it is “cautiously optimistic” about a ceasefire deal with Russia and Ukraine following a visit to Moscow by Donald Trump’s special envoy, even as Ukraine warned Vladimir Putin was trying to undermine diplomacy and said the US must step up pressure on him.
Trump hailed “very good and productive” talks between his envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin, but publicly called on the Kremlin to show mercy to Ukrainian troops he said were “completely surrounded” by Russian forces.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was cautiously optimistic following talks in Moscow this week.Credit: AP
“I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared,” Trump posted on Friday morning, US time. “This would be a horrible massacre, one not seen since World War II.”
But in a speech to the US Department of Justice later on Friday, Trump again appeared to blame Ukraine for the war, saying: “You don’t want to pick on someone that’s a lot larger than you, even with the money. There’s a lot of money that we gave them.”
Ukrainian military commanders denied their troops in the Russian region of Kursk were encircled, saying the suggestion was Kremlin propaganda. But Ukraine’s forces are pulling back after Russia stepped up attacks and retook territory, including the town of Sudzha.
Putin visited the region on Wednesday to praise the successful offensive, just a day after the US asked him to consider an interim 30-day ceasefire it had agreed with Kyiv.
Vladimir Putin, left, shakes hands with Russian Chief of General Staff General Valery Gerasimov while visiting military headquarters in the Kursk region of Russia.Credit: Russian Presidential Press Service via AP
The Russian president said he supported such a ceasefire in principle, but had questions which needed to be discussed with the Americans. Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow on Thursday (Friday AEDT) and was flying home to relay the Kremlin’s views to US officials on the weekend and discuss next steps.
The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said Putin’s rejection of the US proposal in favour of an alternative ceasefire agreement that asymmetrically benefited Russia was a clear signal the Russian president was not committed to peace.
“Putin is holding the ceasefire proposal hostage and is attempting to extract pre-emptive concessions ahead of formal negotiations to end the war,” its latest report said.
Trump described Putin’s initial reaction to the ceasefire plan as “very promising”, but incomplete. “We’d like to see a ceasefire from Russia,” he said. “Now we’re going to see whether or not Russia’s there, and if they’re not, it will be a very disappointing moment for the world … Hopefully, they’ll do the right thing.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US in particular needed to bring more pressure to bear on Moscow at this critical time.Credit: AP
There had also been detailed discussions about what land Ukraine might give up in a peace agreement, Trump said. “We’ve not been working in the dark, we’ve been discussing … pieces of land that would be kept and lost, and all of the other elements of a final agreement. There’s a power plant involved … it’s not an easy process.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – whose relationship with Trump and the administration was sorely tested after a catastrophic meeting at the White House two weeks ago – said he supported the full ceasefire sought by the Americans, but argued Putin was wrongly being given the benefit of the doubt.
“We want to trust America and its President. Ukraine is ready to act quickly and constructively. And we have warned that the only side that will try to sabotage everything will not be us,” Zelensky said in a series of posts on social media platform X on Friday.
“Putin is lying about the real situation on the battlefield, he is lying about the casualties, he is lying about the true state of his economy, which has been damaged by his foolish imperial ambitions, and he is doing everything possible to ensure that diplomacy fails.
“Putin cannot exit this war because that would leave him with nothing. That is why he is now doing everything he can to sabotage diplomacy by setting extremely difficult and unacceptable conditions right from the start.
“I strongly urge everyone who can influence Russia, especially the United States, to take strong steps that can help. Pressure must be applied to the one who does not want to stop the war.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the events of the week added up to “positive momentum” for peace. “I think there is reason to be cautiously optimistic. But by the same token, we continue to recognise this is a difficult and complex situation,” he told reporters at a G7 meeting in Canada.
“We’ll see what Russia and others are willing to do. It’s not just Russia, obviously; it has to be things that are acceptable to Ukraine.”
Asked whether he trusted Putin, Rubio dismissed the question as irrelevant. “In foreign policy, it’s not about trusting, it’s about actions, it’s about things that you do,” he said. “In the end, on something like this, you can’t just say you want peace, you have to do peace, and that’s true for both sides.”
The US drew closer to its G7 allies at the meeting, with the group issuing a statement at the summit’s conclusion that reaffirmed the group’s “unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its territorial integrity” and warned Russia to follow Kyiv in accepting a ceasefire or face possible further sanctions.
The G7 meeting involved foreign ministers from the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and a representative from the European Union.
with Reuters
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