Trump to Speak With Putin Tuesday in Ukraine Ceasefire Push

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(Bloomberg) – President Donald Trump said he will speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, as the United States pressures the end of fighting in Ukraine and European nations to support Kiev.

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“We are in good health, I think with Russia,” Trump told reporters on the first air force on Sunday. “We will see if we have something to announce, perhaps by Tuesday,” he said, adding that there is a “very good opportunity” for a deal.

The Trump administration prompted a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine amid a wave of renewable participation between Washington and Moscow, after three years of the full invasion of Russia. However, this effort has caused anxiety among European leaders who worried that Trump may give up too much on behalf of Ukraine in a direct exchange of Putin and to leave Kiev without any long -term security guarantees.

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In response to a question about the concessions he would seek from Putin, which has retreated again and again, calls for a quick stop of fighting, Trump said a lot of discussion would be about the lands.

“Many lands are very different from what they were before the war, as you know,” he told reporters. “We will talk about the ground, we will talk about power plants – this, as you know, this is a big question.”

Read: The allies of Ukraine agree to increase economic pressure on Russia

He added: “We are already talking about that, and we divide some assets.”

Putin has declared efforts to stop the fighting, as his forces, backed by North Korean soldiers, have achieved the gains of the increasing battlefield, including pushing the Ukrainian forces back from parts of the Russian Kursk region that they seized in a sudden attack last year. American envoy Stephen Witkeov met Putin last week but failed to secure a deal to stop the conflict.

Putin said he is looking for a more durable agreement, while insisting on a set of conditions that Kiev will be difficult to accept. Russia has previously demanded that Ukraine become a neutral nation, which greatly reduces the size of its armed forces and waiver lands, starting with the land that Russia has already seized in the war.

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Meanwhile, one of the European countries said that they agreed on Saturday to continue to tighten restrictions on the Russian economy, although it was not clear how they would advance more than three years after a large number of the United States and European to the war.

Read: US allies tried to know who is the real Rubio in G-7 in Canada

“It is really important at this stage to put the maximum pressure on Russia,” said UK Prime Minister Kiir Starmer on Saturday after a call with about twenty other leaders, including the presidents of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and several European countries.

The Sunday Times reported that European officials have crushed plans for the peacekeeping force for more than 10,000 soldiers for Ukraine, noting large government sources. The largest part of the United Kingdom and France may come, according to the newspaper, which also said that about 35 countries have agreed to provide weapons, logistical and intelligence support for the mission.

But European leaders want to see any force on the ground in Ukraine supported by American security guarantees in the form of an air force, intelligence and border surveillance. It is not clear whether Trump is ready to do this. While he said it could increase the economic and political pressure on Russia if Putin did not come to the table, he was generally more critical to Ukraine and President Voludimir Zellinsky.

– With the help of Greg Sullivan and Alex Wikham.

(Updates with European efforts and other details all over)

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