US President Donald Trump has issued a subtle warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, hinting at potential consequences if Washington is unhappy with Moscow's next steps in the conflict, reports Al Jazeera.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Wednesday, Trump stated that he intends to speak with Putin in the coming days. He added that the Russian leader is already aware of the US administration's position on the matter.
While Trump did not detail what actions the US might take, his remarks suggest a readiness to respond if Russia escalates tensions further in Ukraine.
"I have no message to President Putin. He knows where I stand, and he'll make a decision one way or the other," Trump said.
"Whatever his decision is, we'll either be happy about it or unhappy. And if we're unhappy about it, you'll see things happen."
Trump's comments came after Putin said earlier that he would be willing to meet his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in Moscow.
"Donald asked me for such a meeting. I said: 'Yes, it's possible, let Zelenskyy come to Moscow,'" Putin said at the end of his visit to China, where he attended Beijing's commemorations of the 80th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II.
"I have never ruled out the possibility of such a meeting," Putin said. "But is there any point? Let's see."
Putin added that Moscow would achieve its aims in Ukraine militarily if it could not reach an agreement.
"Let's see how the situation develops," Putin said.
Responding to Putin's comments, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said there were "serious proposals" by seven countries to host a meeting between the two leaders, which Zelenskyy was ready for at "any point in time".
"Yet, Putin continues to mess around with everyone by making knowingly unacceptable proposals. Only increased pressure can force Russia to finally get serious about the peace process," Sybiha wrote on social media.
Trump has suggested a one-on-one meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy as part of his efforts to bring an end to the three-and-a-half-year-long conflict.
Despite Trump's pledge to bring a swift end to the conflict, Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on the terms of any potential peace agreement.
Russia has said that any deal with Ukraine would need to include land in four regions it has annexed since 2022, while Kyiv has ruled out ceding any territory.
Reporting from Moscow, Al Jazeera's Dorsa Jabbari said Putin provided an insight into how he sees the war unfolding.
"He believes that the United States administration of Donald Trump understands what Russia's position is and that Russia would be willing to negotiate an end to this conflict, but it's not going to submit to the demands that Ukraine is making and its own security guarantees have to be met," Jabbari said.
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