Russian President Vladimir Putin has minimized his recent run-in with US President Donald Trump, where they shared nothing more than "small talk" in "broken English" during a 30-second ride together at the recent meeting in Alaska.
When questioned over Trump's offer to have peace negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Putin sidestepped giving a definitive reply. Reports indicate Trump had issued an ultimatum by Monday for Moscow to respond, but the Russian president shied away from guaranteeing whether he would participate.
Rather, addressing the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin, China, Putin reaffirmed his longstanding justification of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, blaming the West once again for instigating the war. He thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for their support, thanking them for their diplomatic initiatives to "facilitate the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis."
In Washington, Trump was tougher when asked for his message to Putin regarding 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 in the Oval Office to reporters.
“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 added, hinting at potential consequences without specifying details.
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In spite of the bristling rhetoric, the Trump government has avoided new sanctions against Moscow and instead maintained diplomatic channels open. The officials have indicated negotiations are still more desirable than confrontation, although the US has continued to indicate it stands willing to move if peace negotiations falter.
Putin's hesitance to bind himself, combined with Trump's cryptic threats, highlights the ambiguity over future talks. With Ukraine in the middle, the world is focused on whether Moscow will finally enter serious negotiations or drive the war further into deadlock.
