Trump: War in Ukraine is "closer to ending than ever before"
US President Donald Trump once again claims that an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine is "approaching" and that this may be the "closest" they have come to peace. At the same time, he warned against actions that could upset the "balance" ahead of negotiations.
He said this during a briefing at the White House, Censor.NET reports.
On peace being "close" in Ukraine
According to Trump, they are now closer than ever to ending the war.
"The other day, I spoke with Vladimir Putin — I mentioned this earlier — about ending his war with Ukraine; I think we’re getting close. By the way, we may be closer now than ever before. But I mentioned: could you please release Stephen Hubbard? He agreed to do that," Trump said.
On Witkoff calling Putin a "humanitarian"
Journalists asked Trump whether it was appropriate for his special envoy Steve Witkoff to call Putin a "humanitarian".
He replied: "I think, for this particular purpose, it’s an appropriate word. For the purpose of releasing someone who thought he would spend the rest of his life in prison. But I wouldn’t say anything either way."
Negotiations, China and Russia
"We are negotiating with Russia to stop the war with Ukraine, and we are quite pleased that Russia did not get involved in the situation with Iran," Trump said.
In his view, it is very important that Russia and China either did not get involved or were far less involved than they could have been.
"The last thing I want is to upset the balance when we are close to ending the war," Trump said.
Trump also criticised those who, according to him, wanted him to act differently towards Russia.
"If we had done what those foolish people wanted, he would not be coming back now; he would be sitting there for another 20 years. The last thing I was going to do was ruin that," Trump claimed, referring to Hubbard.
According to Trump, China could be much more involved, but its involvement is currently relatively limited.
"Both countries would like to see the war end. We are working on this with Russia, and China is also involved," he added.
- This is not the first time Trump has said the war is close to ending. Even before returning to office in 2025, he boasted that he would stop the Russian-Ukrainian war within 24 hours.
