“I believe that the president is going to have a successful call with — with Vladimir Putin,” U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday on “This Week.”
A week prior, Vice President JD Vance had said of the Russians, “We think they’re asking for too much.”
Trump announced Saturday he will speak with Putin over the phone on Monday at 10 a.m.
The president said he planned to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and “various” NATO allies after his call with Putin.
Witkoff: Well, the president has been very clear, he wants to solve this — this conflict diplomatically and with dialogue.
Predicting that Trump would have a “successful” phone call with President Vladimir Putin on Monday, the top negotiator working to end Russia’s war in Ukraine said he thought the discussion “will go a long way towards identifying where we are and how we complete this negotiation.”. “,”.
The president will have a successful call with Vladimir Putin, according to U.S. S. . On Sunday, Steve Witkoff, special envoy, stated on “This Week. They are acquainted. The president is adamant about getting something done here. No one else can if he is incapable of doing it. “..”.
Russian and Ukrainian delegations convened in Turkey on Thursday for the first direct discussions aimed at putting an end to the conflict that Russia initiated in February 2022 when it invaded its sovereign neighbor in full force. After those discussions, a Ukrainian source told ABC News that the Russians were requesting things that were not realistic. Vice President JD Vance had remarked about the Russians a week earlier, “We believe they’re asking for too much.”. “,”.
Witkoff told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl that he “assessed that this is a very complicated conflict that shouldn’t have happened” when asked if he agreed with Vance’s assessment. “.”.
Witkoff remarked, “I think in a negotiation like this, people take positions.”. “To narrow . is the art here. the distance between the parties, you know. I believe that we have accomplished that to a certain degree. To a certain degree, each party is staking out their positions. Additionally, I believe that Monday will be crucial in determining our current position and the best course of action for concluding this negotiation. “.
Trump declared on Saturday that he would call Putin at 10 a.m. on Monday. M. ET. After his call with Putin, the president stated that he would meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and “various” NATO allies.
From Witkoff’s interview, here are some additional highlights.
claims that there is a “very clear red line” for Iranian uranium enrichment in nuclear deal negotiations.
Karl: Can you provide us with an overview of the general terms of the agreement that President Trump is seeking with Iran?
Witkoff: The president has stated unequivocally that he wants to resolve this dispute amicably and through discussion. He’s given—he’s given every indication. The supreme leader has received letters from him directly. I was sent out to deliver that message as well, and I did just that.
The one very, very obvious red line that we have is enrichment. Not even 1% of an enrichment capability is acceptable. We believe we have presented the Iranians with a proposal that tackles some of this without being disrespectful. dot. However, from our perspective, Jon, it all starts with a deal that excludes enrichment. That is not feasible for us. since weaponization is made possible by enrichment. Furthermore, we will not permit a bomb to arrive.
However, aside from that, there are numerous ways we can accomplish our objectives in this negotiation. We anticipate meeting in Europe sometime this week. We also hope that it will result in some genuine positive outcomes.
claims that numerous “initiatives” are in progress to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Karl: Are you urging the Israelis to postpone some of the offensive operations that are still going on in Gaza and to let that aid in?
Witkoff: Jon, the president, is selfless. Furthermore, I believe that the humanitarian situation in Gaza worries everyone. It is a highly complex situation there, though. Logistically, we are—I don’t believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu’s and President Trump’s positions are any different. There are a lot of initiatives that we are working on to address this, but I believe the main problem right now is how to logistically get all of those trucks into Gaza and set up the aid stations. Mobile kitchens will be sent in there. At the border, trucks loaded with flour are waiting. Israeli officials have signaled their intention to start letting a lot more of these trucks enter. However, it isn’t that simple. It is logistically challenging.
denies any ethical issues with Qatar’s donation of a 747-8 jet to Air Force One.
It is a completely legitimate government-to-government, Department of Defense-to-Department of Defense transaction that has been occurring in the regular course of our lives from the beginning. Services are traded between governments. dots. Because of all the amazing things we have done for them in the past, they (the Qataris) made the decision to donate something. On top of that, they announced $1.02 trillion in investments in the United States of America, which will create jobs and accomplish a host of other amazing things.
So, I’m not sure how anyone would interpret this as the Qataris trying to use this to their advantage. The dot. I would like to emphasize that this donation is for the benefit of the United States of America. Thus, it simply must be perceived as such.
