Moscow/ Russia: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday identified the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a "quite suitable" location for a potential upcoming meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.
“We have many friends who are ready to help us organize events of this kind. One of our friends is the president of the United Arab Emirates,” Putin told reporters at the Kremlin following a meeting with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who was in Moscow on an official visit.
Putin noted that both Moscow and Washington have expressed interest in holding the talks, emphasizing that “who initiated it is no longer important.” He added, “I think we will decide, but this (UAE) would be one of the suitable, quite suitable locations.”
When asked about the possibility of a trilateral meeting including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Putin said he was not opposed but stressed that certain conditions must first be met to enable such discussions.
The remarks came just hours after Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters that Russia and the U.S. had reached a preliminary agreement to hold a meeting between Putin and Trump “in the coming days.” Ushakov also confirmed that both sides had agreed “in principle” on the venue, with final details to be announced soon. He indicated that next week is being targeted for the summit.
If confirmed, this meeting would mark the first in-person summit between a sitting Russian president and Donald Trump, and the first meeting between Putin and a U.S. president since his June 2021 summit with President Joe Biden in Geneva, Switzerland.
U.S. officials have not yet issued a statement regarding Putin’s comments or the reported agreement.
