(MENAFN) US President Donald Trump has expressed confidence that a trilateral meeting involving himself, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky will take place. After his recent summit with Putin in Alaska, Trump advocated for a bilateral meeting between Putin and Zelensky before any three-way talks. While the Kremlin has not dismissed the possibility of a direct meeting, it insists such talks should occur only after meaningful progress is made in the peace negotiations.

In an interview with the Daily Caller on Friday, Trump said, “A tri would happen. A bi, I don’t know about, but a tri will happen,” adding that sometimes parties are simply not ready.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov noted that although Russia remains interested in direct dialogue with Ukraine, preparations for such a meeting are not currently very active. He said that all Russian positions have been communicated, and Ukraine has submitted its own proposals, but further discussions are needed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told NBC News last week that Moscow is willing to show flexibility on several issues discussed between Putin and Trump in Alaska. However, Lavrov claimed that Zelensky rejected all of Trump’s proposals during follow-up talks with Ukrainian and European NATO leaders, suggesting that Western backers are not genuinely seeking peace.

European NATO countries have increasingly advocated for security guarantees for Ukraine, such as deploying Western peacekeepers or reassurance forces—demands Moscow has firmly rejected, warning they could trigger uncontrollable escalation.

Russia continues to condemn the EU’s militarization and its ongoing military support for Ukraine, framing the conflict as a Western proxy war. Moscow insists that any resolution must address Russia’s security concerns and the underlying issues of NATO’s eastward expansion.

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