President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Ukraine and Russia are “making progress” toward a peace agreement, though he acknowledged the situation remains “difficult” to resolve.
According to Fox News, while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump offered insight into the ongoing negotiations and suggested that U.S. Envoy Steve Witkoff could soon engage in talks in Moscow, potentially alongside Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
“We’re having good talks,” Trump said. “Ukraine is doing well. I think they’re pretty happy about it. I’d like to see it end, and we won’t know for a little while. Well, we’re making progress.”
Trump reflected on his past foreign policy experience, noting that while his administration had settled eight conflicts, the Ukraine-Russia situation has proven particularly challenging.
“I thought this would be one of the easier ones because of my relationship with President Putin, but this is probably one of the more difficult ones. There’s a lot of hatred,” he said.
Europe, Trump added, is playing a significant role in providing security guarantees for Ukraine to deter further aggression from Russia.
Last week, Trump’s administration drew scrutiny for presenting a 28-point peace concept to lawmakers. Some members of Congress, including Republicans, dismissed it as a “wish list” for Russia. Trump downplayed the criticism on Tuesday, describing the document as “just a map.”
“All that was was a map. That was not a plan. It was a concept. And from there they’re taking each one of the 28 points, and then you get down to 22 points. A lot of them were solved and actually very favorably solved. So, so we’ll see how—we’ll see what happens,” Trump said.
When asked about a timeline for a deal, Trump said there is no fixed deadline. “The deadline for me is when it’s over,” he said. “I think everybody’s tired of fighting at this moment. They are losing, losing too many people.”
Despite the complexities, Trump expressed cautious optimism, framing the talks as a step toward ending the conflict while acknowledging the deep-seated challenges that remain.
