Trump believes end to Russia-Ukraine war is possible — White House
US President Donald Trump continues to believe that ending the war between Russia and Ukraine remains possible. This was stated by White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt during a conversation with journalists near the presidential residence.
According to CBS News, the administration representative was asked whether the American leader's position on the prospects for a peace agreement had changed, particularly in light of reports that Russia may have shared intelligence with Iran during the Israeli-American operation.
In response, Levitt noted that Trump remains convinced of the possibility of a diplomatic settlement.
"I think the president would say that peace is still an achievable goal in the Russian-Ukrainian war. You saw how Special Envoy Witkoff reported yesterday on social media about a new prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine. This is what this administration wants to see and what the president will continue to work on," she said.
When asked by reporters whether Trump had expressed disappointment to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the possible exchange of intelligence between Russia and Iran, the spokeswoman replied that the president would comment on the matter himself.
"I will let the president speak directly on this issue," Levitt said.
Negotiations to end the war
Earlier, on 17–18 February, another round of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States and Russia on a possible end to the war took place in Geneva.
According to the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Rustem Umerov, after the joint part of the meeting, the delegations continued their work in separate groups on various issues. The discussions focused on practical mechanisms for implementing possible decisions.
On the same day, Umerov held a separate meeting in Geneva with representatives of the United States, France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland, during which the parties agreed on approaches to further steps in the negotiation process.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff reported "significant progress" after the first day of talks and said that the parties had agreed to continue working towards a peace agreement.
On the second day of negotiations on 18 February, Rustem Umerov described the discussions as "intensive and substantive," noting that the delegations had worked on both the political and military aspects of possible agreements.
According to him, the next step should be to reach a consensus in order to submit the developed decisions to the presidents for consideration.
The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, described this round of negotiations as "difficult but businesslike."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also stated that during the negotiations, constructive agreements were reached on monitoring a possible ceasefire, which the American side may join.
In addition, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kirill Budanov, who is part of the Ukrainian delegation, said that a new meeting of the negotiating parties may take place in the near future.
