On Saturday, October 25, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump downplayed the likelihood of a summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin anytime soon, despite a top Kremlin negotiator gathering to discuss ending the war in Ukraine with U.S. officials.
“I need to be certain that we will reach an agreement. Days after arrangements for a summit with Mr. Putin in Budapest fell through, Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he departed for Asia, “I’m not going to be wasting my time.”
“My relationship with Vladimir Putin has always been excellent, but this has been really disappointing,” Mr. Trump stated. “I believed that this would have been completed prior to the Middle East’s peace.”
According to a Russian source acquainted with the discussions, the President made these remarks during a meeting between Kremlin negotiator Kirill Dmitriev and Trump administration officials on Friday, October 24, 2025, and Saturday, October 25, 2025, as reported by AFP. It was anticipated that discussions will continue on Sunday, October 26, 2025.
According to U.S. media, Mr. Dmitriev met with Mr. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday, October 25, 2025, in Florida.
After Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he supported Trump’s plan to use the present frontline as the starting point for talks with Russia, Mr. Dmitriev told CNN in an interview on Friday, October 24, 2025, that a diplomatic solution to the Ukrainian crisis was within reach.
“I think a diplomatic solution between Russia, the US, and Ukraine is actually pretty close,” Mr. Dmitriev told CNN.
“President Zelenskyy’s early recognition that it’s about battle lines is a significant step. His prior stance was that Russia should withdraw entirely, so in reality, I believe we are rather near to reaching a mutually agreeable diplomatic solution.
His trip to the US followed Washington’s imposition of sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil firms on Wednesday.
After unsuccessful negotiations in Alaska in August, Mr. Trump’s patience finally gave out when arrangements for a new summit with Mr. Putin in Budapest fell through. He had been delaying the imposition of penalties against Russia for months.
However, the Republican billionaire has stated that he expects the “war will be settled” and that the sanctions imposed on Rosneft and Lukoil are temporary.
While acknowledging that the sanctions were “serious,” Mr. Putin maintained that they were insufficient to seriously harm the Russian economy.
“It does not strengthen Russia-U.S. relations, which have only just begun to recover,” he continued, calling the sanctions a “unfriendly act.”
On Friday, October 24, 2025, Mr. Dmitriev stated that the two leaders’ meeting “will happen, but probably at a later date,” while the Russian leader stated that he was still willing to speaking with Mr. Trump.
The U.S. penalties are “a strong and much-needed message that aggression will not go unanswered,” according to Mr. Zelenskyy.
In tandem with the U.S. actions, the European Union imposed severe penalties on the Russian oil and gas industry.
