Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump could meet as early as before the end of February. Although an in-person meeting will take time to prepare, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday (Feb 19), Russian news agencies reported.

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Peskov said the US-Russia meeting on Tuesday (Feb 18) in Riyadh was a “very, very important step” toward a settlement in the Ukraine war, which is nearing its third year.

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“In order to carry out, figuratively speaking, resuscitation measures, diplomats will now begin to work in light of the agreement (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov reached yesterday with (U.S. Secretary of State Marco) Rubio,” Peskov said, as quoted by state media.

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“But this is the first step…Naturally, it’s impossible to fix everything in one day or a week. There is a long way to go,” he added.

First US-Russia talks to end Ukraine conflict

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The talks in Saudi Arabia were the first time top US and Russian officials had met to discuss ending the conflict in Europe since World War Two. Kyiv said it would not accept any deal without its consent, as no Ukrainian or European officials were invited to the discussion.

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Trump said on Tuesday (Feb 18) that he would probably meet Putin this month. He also dismissed Ukraine’s concerns about being left out of the talks in Saudi Arabia and suggested Kyiv could have struck a deal with Russia earlier.

The most recent time that US and Russian leaders met face-to-face was when Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden and Putin earlier held a summit in Geneva in June 2021. Although Biden and Putin had a phone call in February 2022.

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Trump has overturned Western policy on Russia and Ukraine, holding meetings with Russia without Ukraine or European leaders, speaking to Putin, and talking over bringing down oil prices, of which Russia is a major exporter.

(With inputs from agencies)