New York [US], February 8: "I'll probably meet with President Zelensky next week. And I'll probably talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin. I want to end this senseless war. There have been 800,000 to 900,000 Russian soldiers killed or seriously wounded, while the number on the Ukrainian side is 700,000 people," Reuters quoted Mr. Trump as saying at the White House on February 7.
According to Reuters, President Trump did not specify whether the meeting would be in person or online. When asked where such a meeting would take place, Mr. Trump said: "I'm still here." He affirmed that he would not go to Ukraine.
The US leader said he wanted to talk to President Zelensky about the security of Ukrainian assets such as "rare earth" minerals and wanted "an equivalent amount" in exchange for US assistance. "We want balance," Trump said.
According to the Chief of Staff of the President of Ukraine Andy Yermak, the country wants to continue to receive support from the United States in the war with Russia, and is looking forward to a visit this month from Mr. Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for Russia and Ukraine.
Mr Yermak said he had spoken to Mr Kellogg about topics including the situation on the battlefield, the safety of Ukrainian civilians and meetings at the annual Munich Security Conference later this month.
Also on February 7, President Zelensky later said that Washington and Kyiv were planning to talk, but did not confirm whether he would meet with US President Trump. President Zelensky also revealed that his team had carefully studied a previously classified map of rare earth and important mineral deposits in the country.
"We always appreciate working with Mr. Trump and are planning to hold meetings and discussions at the group level. Specialized US and Ukrainian teams are working to agree on the details," he wrote on social media.
Ukraine has been touting the idea of allowing allies to invest in its critical minerals since last fall, when it presented a "victory plan" aimed at giving Ukraine the best negotiating position and forcing Moscow to the negotiating table.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned on February 7 that "there is a lot of inaccurate information" about the US plan to end the war in Ukraine, but reaffirmed that Russia is ready for dialogue to find a solution to the conflict.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
