Putin expressed his satisfaction with the manner in which talks with Trump proceeded.
As negotiations for a ceasefire in the Russian-Ukraine war continue, President Cyril Ramaphosa said he’s been briefed in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin about his meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska.
Trump met Putin on Friday, but the US president failed to negotiate a ceasefire in the nearly three-and-a-half-year war.
Ceasefire
The US president, who dropped his insistence on a ceasefire in favour of a final peace deal after meeting Putin, said Sunday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could end the war “almost immediately, if he wants to”, but that, for Ukraine, there was “no getting back” Crimea and “no going into Nato”.
‘Putin satisfied’
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, said Putin expressed his satisfaction with the manner in which talks with Trump proceeded and their alignment on the peace process.
“President Ramaphosa appreciated the briefing from President Putin. The president underscored the need for more compromise on key issues for lasting peace to be attained between Russia and Ukraine.
“Both leaders once again pledged to maintain open lines of communication and to continue their cooperation on issues of bilateral interests,” Magwenya said.
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Peace
Meanwhile, Putin and Zelensky looked set for a peace summit after fast-moving talks on Monday between Trump and European leaders that focused on the key issue of long-term security guarantees for Kyiv.
Hopes of a breakthrough rose after Trump said he had spoken by phone with Putin following a “very good” meeting with the Europeans and the Ukrainian president at the White House.
It would be the first meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders since Moscow’s brutal invasion nearly three and a half years ago, and comes as Trump tries to live up to his promise to quickly end the war.
Summit
The 79-year-old Trump wrote on his Truth Social network that “everyone is very happy about the possibility of peace for Russia/Ukraine.”
“At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelensky,” Trump said.
Trump said he would then hold a three-way summit with the Ukrainian and Russian leaders, AFP reported.
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