U.S. President Donald Trump has a “solid” strategy to end the war in Ukraine within months, the president’s special representative for Ukraine and Russia has said.
Keith Kellogg's assertion comes amid behind-the-scenes talks and back-channel negotiations to find a way to bring the nearly 3-year-old Russian invasion to an end.
Trump has insisted he wants to end the war quickly, and said he wants to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin as soon possible.
Putin for his part has complimented Trump and signaled a willingness to meet. But he's also ruled out holding talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which would potentially complicate any upcoming negotiations.
In an interview published on February 1 by AP, Zelenskyy said that direct talks between Washington and Moscow without including Ukraine could be "very dangerous."
Trump and Putin "may have their own relations, but talking about Ukraine without us — it is dangerous for everyone,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy also said his team has been in contact with the Trump administration at a “general level,” but he said he believes face-to-face meetings will take place soon.
SEE ALSO: Putin Says Ready For Peace Talks, But Not With 'Illegitimate' ZelenskyyKellogg told Fox News on January 31 that "I would say it's months [for a deal]. It's not years we are talking about. We have a solid action plan,”
Calling Trump a “great dealmaker,” Kellogg said the U.S. president is "creating leverage for both Kyiv and Moscow" because he "knows where to apply pressure, and where not to apply pressure."
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Kellogg, a retired lieutenant-general tasked with leading negotiations to end the war, emphasized that "resolving the Russia-Ukraine war is in the national-security interests of the United States."
Trump said on January 31 that he and Putin could soon talk and announce something significant toward ending the conflict in Ukraine.
“We will be speaking, and I think will perhaps do something that will be significant,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We want to end that war.”
He added that his administration has already had “very serious discussions about that war” in an attempt to end it. “It’s just a senseless situation and it’s got to stop.”
Trump did not say who from his administration had been in contact with the Russians but insisted the two sides were “already talking." He declined to say whether he had been involved in those conversations.
Trump said last week that he would like to meet with Putin immediately to secure an end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Based on what he has heard, Putin would like to see him, he said.
"Every day we don't meet, soldiers are being killed in the battlefield," he said on January 23.
SEE ALSO: Designated U.S. Envoy For Ukraine Says Trump Wants Equitable End To WarTrump said during last year’s election campaign he could end the conflict in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office. He now says he hopes to end the fighting within six months.
He also claimed during the campaign that Russia never would have invaded Ukraine if he had been president and repeated that claim in his remarks on January 31.
Trump has been highly critical of the aid Washington has disbursed to Kyiv and has said Ukraine should have made concessions to Putin in the months before Russia launched the invasion nearly three years ago.
SEE ALSO: Could Trump Cut A Deal With Putin And Leave Ukraine In The Cold?In a recent interview with Russian state television, Putin praised Trump as a “clever and pragmatic man” who is focused on U.S. interests.
“We always had a businesslike, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current U.S. president,” Putin said.
Putin on January 29 ruled out direct peace talks with Zelenskyy, saying he does not consider the Ukrainian president to be the legitimate leader of Ukraine.
An election was to have taken place on March 31, 2024, but was postponed because the country is still under martial law due to the war.
In his AP interview, Zelenskyy said the U.S. leader could bring Putin to the table through the threat of further sanctions on Russia’s energy and banking sectors, along with continuing U.S. aid to Ukraine's military.