Trump and Putin to Discuss Ending the Ukraine War This Week

Donald Trump's special representative states that the U.S. President will discuss ways to end the three-year war in Ukraine with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin this week. Steve Witkoff, who spoke with CNN on Sunday, March 17, evaluated his recent negotiations with Putin in Moscow as 'positive' and expressed hope for real progress towards ending the conflict. He told CNN, 'I expect a phone call between both presidents this week' and emphasized his belief that the dialogue between Trump and Putin will be 'very good and positive.' Mr. Witkoff, who is Trump's representative for Middle Eastern affairs but also plays a role in the peace negotiations regarding Ukraine, added, 'We are still engaging and talking with the Ukrainians as well.' The representative of Donald Trump stated, 'Although the situation on the battlefield is very complex, we are bridging the gap between the two sides.' The U.S. President announced on February 13 that he had a phone conversation with Vladimir Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine and other issues. Following that, high-level delegations from both countries met on February 18 in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. In those negotiations, Ukraine and European countries were not present. Agreement was reached to increase pressure on Moscow and continue support for Kyiv at a meeting of Ukraine's allies. Meanwhile, as Europe and the U.S. strive for peace between Russia and Ukraine, deadly and destructive airstrikes between the two countries continue. Russian army forces continued their pressure on Saturday to push Ukrainian forces back from the Kursk region inside Russian territory, but Kyiv announced that its forces are not encircled in that area. Simultaneously, several regions in both countries were targeted by airstrikes. During these attacks in the Belgorod region of Russia, near the Ukrainian border, at least three people were injured. According to Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of this region, Ukrainian drones targeted a residential house in the city of Gubkin, causing a fire. Alexander Gusev, the governor of the Voronezh region, which borders Ukraine, also announced that air defense units in three areas shot down more than 15 Ukrainian drones. He stated that no casualties have been reported yet. On the other hand, local officials in Ukraine reported damages, and according to local military officials, a woman was killed in the city of Nikopol, Ukraine. In Chernihiv, from the northern provinces of Ukraine, Russian drones targeted a five-story building, completely destroying its upper two floors. No casualty figures have been released yet, but officials stated that rescue teams are on-site. Ukrainian media also reported several explosions near Kyiv, the capital, with officials having previously issued warnings about a drone attack in this area. These developments come as Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister, emphasized on Friday after concluding a virtual meeting with 25 countries and organizations supporting Ukraine that Vladimir Putin 'must stop his brutal attacks if he is serious about peace.' Donald Trump, the U.S. President, also stated that Russia 'has no choice but to accept a ceasefire; otherwise, it will face sanctions.' He, however, emphasized that he hopes it does not come to that.