Trump more confident about Ukraine deal, may meet Putin in February

US President Donald Trump said on February 18 (US time) he was more confident about the possibility of reaching an agreement to end the war in Ukraine, and said he would "probably" meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the end of February.

Speaking at a press conference at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach (Florida) on February 18, President Trump expressed confidence that an agreement could be reached to end the nearly 3-year war in Ukraine, according to Reuters today, February 19.

The White House owner spoke for the first time after a delegation led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov earlier in the day in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia).

Trump 'hears Ukraine is upset', likely to meet Putin in February

Mr Trump also said he would "probably" meet with his counterpart Putin before the end of the month, while dismissing Ukraine's concerns about the Kyiv government being sidelined in the US-Russia meeting.

"I think I have the ability to end this war," Reuters quoted Mr. Trump.

Regarding Ukraine's complaints about not being able to attend the US-Russia meeting, Mr. Trump also said "I heard they were upset because they didn't have a seat."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticized Kyiv's absence from the dialogue table in Riyadh.

US President Donald Trump holds a press conference at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on February 18.

Regarding the possibility of European countries contributing troops to the peacekeeping force in Ukraine if the US can reach an agreement with Russia to end the war, Mr. Trump said he fully supports this.

In a related development, Secretary of State Rubio on the same day summarized the content of the meeting on Ukraine in Riyadh for the foreign ministers of the UK, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union, according to AFP citing a statement from the French Foreign Ministry .

The exchanges between the US and key European allies have come amid concerns they are being left out of talks on Ukraine.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union's foreign policy chief, warned Mr Rubio not to fall into Russia's trap and accused Moscow of seeking to divide the West.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on February 18 that he would host another conference on Ukraine after the EU emergency summit on February 17 in Paris. However, the French leader believes that President Trump "can restart a useful dialogue" with his counterpart Putin.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-trump-tu-tin-hon-ve-thoa-thuan-ukraine-co-the-gap-ong-putin-ngay-thang-2-185250219061607969.htm