Washington: US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed a desire to negotiate a deal to end the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Trump also indicated that a trilateral meeting involving Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy might be on the horizon.

According to Anadolu Agency, Trump shared these insights with reporters before departing for Dallas to attend the Republican National Convention. He emphasized the positive nature of his recent conversation with Putin, suggesting that both Putin and Zelenskyy are inclined towards reaching an agreement to cease hostilities. "We had a great conversation. He is wanting to make a deal, and if Zelenskyy is wanting to make a deal, that'd be very nice," Trump stated.

When questioned about the obstacles hindering an agreement, Trump attributed the delay to the strained relations between the two leaders. "The holdup is two people that hate each other. I think more than anything else, it's two people that hate each other," he remarked.

Regarding the possibility of facilitating a trilateral meeting, Trump expressed optimism, saying, "It could happen. We had a good conversation. It could happen. Too many people are dying in that war: 25,000 last month." The dialogue with Putin followed recent diplomatic activities by the US, which included visits by special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow and Kyiv over the weekend for discussions with the respective leaderships of Russia and Ukraine.