US President Donald Trump believes Russia has an incentive to end this war but first needs to see a ceasefire, White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said at a briefing.
“I also don’t want to get ahead of these talks. I can tell you they have been a productive conversation. As the president’s spokesman Steve Whitkoff said last night, he believes that Russia wants to end this war, and the president also believes that Russia has an incentive to end this war. And maybe it could be an economic partnership with the United States, but First we need to see a ceasefire,” she said when asked if Russia agreed to anything during talks with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.
She said the president and his representative Witkoff “made that very clear” to the Russian side.
US presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on 11 April. The talks lasted more than four hours.
Witkoff called these talks with Putin “compelling.” He said they discussed steps that could end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Witkoff said on Fox News on 14 April that a peace agreement would include a settlement of the five territories. He did not explain what he meant by that. Russia insists on recognising its control over occupied Crimea, as well as Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions.