[Anchor]
On the 18th, Tuesday local time, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that he plans to have a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
President Trump expressed optimism about the potential for negotiations, stating that there is a good opportunity to end the war in Ukraine, which is likely to involve accommodating Russia’s demands significantly.
Reporting by Kim Sun-jung
[Report]
President Trump, while on the plane returning to the White House, mentioned that significant developments had occurred over the weekend concerning a ceasefire negotiation in Ukraine.
He stated that he plans to speak with Russian President Putin on Tuesday, the 18th local time, emphasizing that there is a good opportunity to end the war.
[Donald Trump / U.S. President: Let’s see if we can end this war. It might be possible, but it might not, yet I believe a very good opportunity has come.]
He also touched on the key issues of the negotiations.
Discussions are ongoing between Ukraine and Russia regarding the so-called “division of certain assets,” with territories and power plants as the focus of these negotiations.
The power plant referred to by President Trump appears to be the nuclear power plant in Ukraine currently occupied by Russian forces.
[Donald Trump / U.S. President: We are already discussing it. It’s about dividing certain assets. We are striving for an agreement.]
In this context, it is reported that the U.S. has proposed preventing Ukraine from joining NATO as Russia demands and ceding the Donbas and other eastern regions occupied by Russia.
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz mentioned that the agreement would involve exchanging Ukraine’s territory for future security guarantees.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko also emphasized in an interview with local media that “the maintenance of Ukraine’s status as a neutral country must be included, as well as the rejection by member countries of Ukraine joining NATO.”
In response, European countries are quickly acting to guard against an end to the conflict that would be entirely favorable to Russia.
Major European countries like the UK and France held a video conference on the 15th and plan to discuss the deployment of peacekeepers in preparation for a possible ceasefire in Ukraine in a military leadership meeting on the 20th.
YTN’s Kim Sun-jung
Video editing: Im Hyun-chul
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