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Trump expressed hope that Russia would agree to the ceasefire proposal, that Ukraine has already agreed to, and said he would discuss it with Putin. Zelenskyy reaffirmed Ukraine’s commitment to peace.
US President Donald Trump talks to the media (Photo: Reuters)
Hours after Saudi Arabia hosted top officials from America and Ukraine for high-stakes meetings, US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (US time) said he hoped Russia would agree to a ceasefire plan drawn up by American and Ukrainian officials and that there would be a US meeting with Russia later.
Ukraine had accepted a 30-day ceasefire proposed by the United States, following critical peace talks between the two sides in Saudi Arabia.
In remarks to reporters, Trump said he would invite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy back to the White House.
Trump said he hoped a total ceasefire could be achieved in the three-year war in the coming days. He said he thinks he will talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin about it this week.
“Now we have to go to Russia and hopefully President Putin will agree to that also,” Trump said.
“I’ll talk to Vladimir Putin, yeah… Hopefully, he’ll also agree [to the ceasefire] and I really think that would be 75 per cent of the way,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, in an X post, Zelenskyy wrote the position of his country remains clear on peace.
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Zelenskyy also posted a self-recorded video and said Ukraine was ready to accept the ceasefire proposal and that it was up to the United States to convince Russia to do the same.
“I received a report from our delegation on their meeting with the American team in Saudi Arabia. The discussion lasted most of the day and was good and constructive—our teams were able to discuss many important details,” Zelenskyy wrote in a lengthy X post.
“Our position remains absolutely clear: Ukraine has been seeking peace from the very first second of this war, and we want to do everything to achieve it as soon as possible and in a reliable way—so that war does not return,” he added.
“Ukraine is ready to accept this proposal—we see it as a positive step and are ready to take it. Now, it is up to the United States to convince Russia to do the same. If Russia agrees, the ceasefire will take effect immediately,” the concluding part of his tweet read.
I received a report from our delegation on their meeting with the American team in Saudi Arabia. The discussion lasted most of the day and was good and constructive—our teams were able to discuss many important details.Our position remains absolutely clear: Ukraine has been… pic.twitter.com/7EZXTVA52C
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 11, 2025
THE CRUCIAL TALKS IN SAUDI ARABIA
Senior officials from Ukraine and the United States opened talks Tuesday focused on ending the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, hours after Russia shot down over 300 Ukrainian drones. It was Ukraine’s biggest attack since the Kremlin ordered the full-scale invasion of its neighbour.
The talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah come after Trump paused US military aid to Ukraine last week, along with some intelligence sharing, in an attempt to pressure Zelenskyy to engage in negotiations to end the war against Russia.
Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel later this week to Moscow, where he could meet with Putin, news agency PTI quoted a person familiar with the matter as saying.
It was the first meeting between the two sides (US and Ukraine) since the Oval Office blowup between Trump and Zelenskyy last month.
The delegations met for about three hours in the morning before taking a break, and officials said the talks continued in the afternoon.
