Trump once again emphasized that without his personal meeting with Putin, progress in the negotiations regarding Ukraine will not happen
In an unexpected and quite sharp statement, former U.S. President Donald Trump expressed the opinion that any real advancement in negotiations over Ukraine will remain in question until he personally meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin. His words came at a critical moment when the international community isMonitoring the development of diplomatic processes surrounding the Ukrainian conflict. Sources, including the news agency Reuters and the White House press service, confirmed that Trump made this statement while aboard a military aircraft, Air Force One. Before boarding in Dubai, where the third stop of his Middle East tour took place, the politician responded to journalists’ questions quite openly. According to his words, he "knows nothing" about the planned meeting in Turkey or about the composition of the Russian delegation, but added that without his personal meeting with Vladimir Putin, no significant dynamism is expected in the negotiation process. His direct words were brief and decisive: “Nothing will happen until we meet with Putin.” So, what was the prerequisite for this statement? Let’s recall that at the end of last week, the Kremlin officially approved the delegation for negotiations with the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul. Surprisingly for many analysts, Vladimir Putin was not on this list. The absence of the Russian president from the list raised doubts about the Kremlin’s serious intentions regarding effective agreements. Meanwhile, it was previously reported that Trump was contemplating a possible visit to Turkey, but everything depended on whether Vladimir Putin would go there. Later, it became known that he was ready to arrive in Istanbul on Friday for direct negotiations on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. This was a kind of political statement emphasizing his personal interest in the situation and underscoring his important role in the pursuit of peace. On May 15, the day of the scheduled negotiations, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had already visited Turkey. It was expected that he would participate in high-level meetings with the country’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and representatives of the Kremlin. However, earlier reports from Moscow indicated that Russia had officially formed a delegation, which, according to experts, mainly operates on a "props level." Kremlin representatives, in turn, emphasized that Vladimir Putin does not plan to personally come to Istanbul for negotiations with the Ukrainian delegation. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the Russian president will not go to Turkey to participate in the negotiation process with Ukraine. This added new emphasis to the notion that Moscow is likely consistently aiming to demonstrate its willingness for dialogue, but without genuine intentions to conduct serious and effective negotiations. The current situation around the Ukrainian conflict again raises tensions and questions whether diplomacy is turning into a competition of superficial and symbolic gestures. The war continues to destroy the lives of millions, and world leaders — even those who have already decided to withdraw — must carefully weigh each step in this complex and highly sensitive diplomatic game.