Washington, DC : US President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) hinted at an impending breakthrough in efforts to secure the release of an American hostage held in Russia, defending his ongoing diplomatic negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin on multiple issues, including Ukraine, Iran, energy pipelines and hostages.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House before departing for Kansas, Trump said diplomatic engagement with Moscow remained necessary to advance negotiations and secure agreements on several fronts. "Well, you’ll see soon enough, because I’m trying to get a hostage that the country’s been after for a long time, and before my time," Trump said when asked what guarantees Putin has given that he wants to strike a deal. "And let’s see what happens, that’ll be—that’ll be soon."
Addressing Moscow and Beijing's actions in West Asia, President Trump noted that both major powers have refrained from stepping in to help Tehran amid escalating US economic and military pressure. "Russia could have done a lot more. That’s right," Trump said. "Russia could have done a lot more to help, if you put it bluntly, Russia could have done a lot more to help Iran. Russia has done very little for Iran, and China could have done a lot more for Iran. They’ve done, and I remember that. When China does not that much, maybe nothing almost, but very little for Iran, and Russia does very little for Iran, I view that as being a very positive thing."
Pointing to Russia's restraint in the region as a reason to keep talking, Trump added: "We also have a very good situation with respect to Iran. Laying off of Iran, it’s nice because we’re hitting Iran very hard, as you know, economically as well as militarily. And Russia’s done nothing there that we could see, and I think that’s a very positive." Trump stressed that negotiations remain active, but warned that Washington keeps the power to walk away if Moscow fails to deliver.
"And of course, we’re negotiating with him on Ukraine. So, I’m not looking to break up negotiations right in the middle," Trump stated. "And by the way, I have the right to do that at any time immediately. So if things don’t work out, I can always do it." When asked about Republican lawmakers who have spoken out against his talks and energy discussions with Russia, Trump asked for patience. He shared that several lawmakers reached out once they understood the fuller picture.
"Well, I think when they find out what the deal is, they—I’ve had four of them call up, because they only put out word last night," Trump said. "I’m in the midst of negotiating a deal. When you’re negotiating a deal, you don’t do that to the people you're negotiating with. And the deal's Ukraine deal. Also, I’m negotiating with them on Iran, because they’ve been very well-behaved on Iran. Also, I’m negotiating with them on hostages, and I’m also negotiating on diesel and the gas pipelines. When you’re negotiating, you don’t do that."
Trump dismissed criticism from inside his party, saying most Republicans trust his negotiating skills. He pointed to his recent campaign rallies as proof of his strong political support. "When I tell that to Republicans that speak out, and there aren’t many of them, because they have confidence in me. I’m the one that got them there. I’m the one that’s winning," Trump said. "I’m the one that’s doing the rallies and taking people into a winning position." He also pointed to rising support in key states as evidence of momentum.
"When you look at what’s happened, if you take a look at what’s happened since I’ve been doing these massive, totally sold-out rallies, nobody’s ever seen anything like it," Trump added. "As an example, we’re up in Texas, we weren’t; we’re up in Alaska, we weren’t; we’re up everybody, every place that I’ve gone to, we’re up."
Earlier on Sunday (local time), Trump claimed that negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict were making "great progress", while defending his administration's diplomatic approach towards Moscow. In a post on Truth Social, Trump described his strategy to strike a deal between the warring nations as a simple one which he said includes ensuring that Russia is not, "foolishly", driven away from the bargaining table.
Trump said that the diplomatic process is making great strides, touting that he can sign the document that involves ongoing hostage negotiations "anytime that I want." "My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table. Great progress is being made, and that includes current hostage negotiations! Signing that document at this time will do that, and I can sign it later, or any time that I want!" Trump wrote.
Friction between Kyiv and Washington has heightened recently. Tensions flared after Trump urged Zelenskyy to resign following Ukrainian deliberations over striking Russian energy facilities. Although the White House subsequently declared an energy truce, that arrangement collapsed rapidly as Russian strikes targeted Ukrainian electrical grids, prompting retaliatory Ukrainian attacks on Russian petroleum infrastructure.