Trump's Ukraine Diplomacy Faces A New Hurdle: Where Can Putin And Zelenskyy Meet?

3 weeks ago

A man wanted for warfare crimes sitting crossed nan array from nan leader of the state he invaded?

That is nan spectacle that President Donald Trump is pushing to put successful nan adjacent fewer weeks, convinced he tin break nan deadlock betwixt Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy pinch a acme that could thief forge an extremity to nan Kremlin's war.

The plan, however, is tangled from nan start.

Some European leaders support that nary specified gathering should return spot earlier Russia agrees to a ceasefire. Many analysts uncertainty that Putin will really work together to meet pinch Zelenskyy. And moreover if he does, there's nan fraught taxable of wherever to clasp nan negotiations, fixed that Putin faces an apprehension warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Kremlin plays it cool

Trump revealed Monday that he called nan Russian leader “to statesman nan arrangements” during his White House gathering pinch Zelenskyy and a posse of European leaders.

The president doubled down Tuesday, telling "Fox & Friends" that he hoped “Putin is going to beryllium good,” adding: “I benignant of group it up pinch Putin and Zelenskyy, and you know, they’re nan ones that person to telephone nan shots. We’re 7,000 miles away.”

Trump seemed eager to accelerate nan timeline of nan mooted talks. "I deliberation it will beryllium reasonably soon," Finnish President Alexander Stubb told NBC News, adding that he hoped it could hap "within nan adjacent 2 weeks."

Moscow, however, poured its customary acold h2o connected nan excitement.

"We do not cull immoderate formats: neither bilateral nor trilateral," said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. But he warned that immoderate acme would person to beryllium prepared "step by step, gradually, starting pinch nan master level and past going done each nan basal steps."

Lavrov, speaking to State TV transmission Rossiya-24, added that "contacts involving apical officials must beryllium prepared pinch nan utmost care."

Location TBD

Zelenskyy said he is "ready" to meet Putin, but it's unclear wherever specified a gathering would return place.

Putin faces an arrest warrant, issued by nan ICC successful 2023, complete nan alleged warfare crime of illegally deporting Ukrainian children. That obligates nan 125 countries that are statement to nan tribunal nether nan Rome Statute to apprehension nan Russian leader and transportation him to The Hague for proceedings if he sets ft connected their territory.

Moscow has many times denied accusations that its forces person committed atrocities successful Ukraine, and nan Kremlin branded nan tribunal determination "null and void."

Trump said Monday nan location was “to beryllium determined,” and nan hunt for a neutral venue has already turned into its ain negotiated guessing game.

Switzerland, already floated by Stubb and French President Emmanuel Macron arsenic a imaginable venue, raised its hand.

Despite being an ICC signatory, Switzerland could invited Putin for a acme fixed that he would beryllium coming for bid purposes, said Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis.

“The extremity of receiving Mr. Putin successful Switzerland without him being arrested is 1 100 percent achievable,” Cassis told Swiss nationalist broadcaster SRF.

Austria's leader besides offered his country, which stood astatine nan disagreement of communist Eastern Europe and nan capitalist West during nan Cold War.

"We guidelines fresh to connection our bully services," Chancellor Christian Stocker posted connected X.

Hungary whitethorn besides beryllium successful play.

Its parliament voted to discontinue nan ICC successful April, which could let Putin to be without consequence of arrest. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has besides remained 1 of nan Kremlin's fewer friends successful Europe amid nan war, though that whitethorn make it little appealing to Kyiv.

Hungarian Parliament Building astatine sunset, Budapest

But obstacles remain: Any Putin formation to Switzerland aliases Hungary risks passing complete countries that mightiness not beryllium truthful forgiving if his level had to make an emergency landing.

Safer bets could beryllium Turkey, which has hosted past summits betwixt Ukraine and Russia, aliases Qatar, which is already utilized to hosting fraught negotiations betwixt warring parties arsenic nan venue for talks betwixt Israel and Hamas. Turkey and Qatar are not members of nan ICC.

Sergei Markov, a erstwhile Kremlin adviser, suggested that a acme could return spot astatine nan extremity of August and that Saudi Arabia could play host.

The U.S. is besides not an ICC signatory, and Putin and Zelenskyy person traveled location successful caller days.

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Whether a venue will moreover request to beryllium chosen is different matter.

While not “impossible,” a gathering betwixt nan 2 leaders would beryllium “a large surprise,” Keir Giles, a elder chap astatine nan London-based deliberation vessel Chatham House, told NBC News.

Putin has “carefully avoided” gathering Zelensky until now, he said successful a telephone interview, “because doing truthful conflicts pinch his communicative of Ukraine not being a due state and Zelenskyy not being a morganatic leader."

Tatiana Stanovaya, a elder chap astatine nan Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, a Berlin-based deliberation tank, echoed those doubts. A gathering would beryllium “pointless” for Putin and will not hap “under nan existent circumstances,” she wrote connected X.

Putin “has many times stated that specified a gathering would only beryllium imaginable if location were well-prepared grounds, which successful believe intends Zelenskyy’s acceptance of Russia’s position for ending nan war,” she said.