Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump says Putin is putting off Zelensky summit because ‘he doesn’t like him’
Donald Trump says he believes Vladimir Putin is avoiding meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky simply due to personal animosity.
The US president has been pushing to arrange a peace summit between the two leaders but his efforts have so far been rebuffed by Moscow.
Asked yesterday why Putin was refusing to meet Zelensky, Trump appeared once again to sympathise with the Russian leader.
“Because he doesn’t like him,” Trump said, adding: “I have people I don’t like, I don’t like to meet with them.”
Trump also admitted that he has spoken on the phone with Putin again since their call on the sidelines of a summit with European leaders in the White House last Monday.
Meanwhile, Zelensky said US and Ukrainian officials would meet later this week to discuss plans for a possible summit with Putin, as well as the broader issue of post-ceasefire security guarantees for Ukraine.
