White House Remains Confident Despite Russia Downplaying Ceasefire Talks
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin appeared to be at odds on Sunday night over ongoing peace talks as delegations prepared for negotiations on a potential ceasefire in Ukraine.
The United States remained optimistic that Monday’s summit in Saudi Arabia could lead to a comprehensive ceasefire and bring an end to the three-year war, Trump’s envoy to Moscow stated on Sunday.
However, the Kremlin tempered expectations, emphasizing that the process was just beginning and warning of difficult negotiations ahead.
“We are only at the start of this journey,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov cautioned, less than a week after Russia rejected Trump’s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire.
The White House is reportedly aiming for a truce by Easter Sunday, reflecting a shift in Trump’s timeline after initially vowing to end the war on his first day in office. Ukraine and European leaders, however, have expressed concerns that Russia is stalling to gain a battlefield advantage—something that could frustrate Trump, who has promised a swift resolution.
Sources close to Trump indicated that while he is willing to wait for the right deal, he is growing increasingly impatient with continued missile and drone attacks despite promises of a temporary truce.
“He will get frustrated if both sides keep targeting infrastructure and energy facilities,” a source close to the administration said.
Despite tensions, White House insiders insist the administration remains calm and urge people to “trust the process.”
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s proposal for a “coalition of the willing” was dismissed by Trump’s special envoy as mere political posturing.
Steve Witkoff, whom Trump dispatched to Moscow, criticized Starmer’s plan as overly simplistic, suggesting that European leaders were trying to emulate Winston Churchill without a concrete strategy.
Details on potential troop deployments and equipment remain vague, and senior military sources dismissed Starmer’s proposal, saying he was getting ahead of himself.
Over the weekend, Witkoff faced backlash for remarks suggesting Ukraine should cede territory. He reiterated on Sunday that he believed Putin was negotiating in good faith and dismissed fears of a broader Russian invasion of Europe.
Trump sought to reassure the public over the weekend, stating that efforts to prevent further escalation were “somewhat under control.” However, his remarks were undercut by continued Russian aggression—on Saturday night, Moscow launched drone strikes across Ukraine, killing civilians. Seven people, including a five-year-old child, were killed in Kyiv, while four others died in Donetsk, including three in a strike on Dobropillya.
The second round of formal talks between US and Russian negotiators is set to begin Monday in Saudi Arabia following a phone call last week between Trump and Putin that ended with mixed signals from both sides.
On Sunday night, American negotiators met with their Ukrainian counterparts in Saudi Arabia ahead of the US-Russia talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his delegation was participating in a “completely constructive manner.”
“But no matter what we tell our partners today, the real challenge is getting Putin to order an end to the strikes,” Zelensky emphasized.
Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov called Sunday’s talks “constructive and meaningful,” noting that discussions focused on critical energy sector issues.
“We discussed key matters, particularly the energy sector,” Umerov said in a social media post.
Meanwhile, China is reportedly considering joining a potential peacekeeping mission, according to German newspaper Die Welt. Diplomats see this as an attempt to leverage China’s close ties with Putin to persuade him to allow foreign peacekeeping forces on the ground.
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