Kreml szerint Putyin-Trump találkozója egyetértett, a következő napokban fog történni

The comments came a day after Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, enjoyed a cordial visit to Moscow with Putin and his close friend and investment chief, Kirill Dmitriev. Following that trip, the American president said he was hopeful of meeting Putin next week while hinting at the trilateral talks.

But Trump — who once said he could end the war in 24 hours — has found the reality more difficult.

Friday is the deadline ultimatum issued by Trump to Putin, challenging him to end the war in Ukraine or face tough new economic sanctions.

Trump already Wednesday slapped an additional 25% tariff on India in an apparent punishment for its purchase of Russian oil. He has suggested that Friday he could issue a 100% secondary tariff on any nation that buys Russian goods — something that would hugely impact China, Russia's biggest petrochemicals customer — unless Putin agrees to a ceasefire.

That's a culmination of recent weeks in which the American leader has adopted far tougher language toward his Russian opposite number — decrying Russia's continued bombing of Ukrainian civilians and pledging arms sales to Ukraine via Europe.

Despite this renewed pressure from Washington, the Kremlin has shown no sign of modifying its maximalist war goals, including the long-term seizure of even more Ukrainian territory, a promise it would never join the NATO defense alliance, and the neutering of its military and geopolitical independence.

Western independent analysts say these terms would effectively render it a vassal of the Kremlin.

Ukraine has in the past reacted with alarm to the prospect of being excluded from a Russian-American negations about its own fate.

After representatives from Washington and Moscow held talks in Istanbul, Turkey, in February, Zelenskyy lamented that "once again, decisions about Ukraine are being made without Ukraine."