Trump Reveals Putin's Desire to Resolve Ukraine Crisis

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he believes Vladimir Putin wants to end the "crisis" in Ukraine, even though talks between the Russian president and American negotiators wrapped up without reaching any agreement. Trump's team called their Moscow meeting "very good," but the president admitted he couldn't predict where negotiations might lead.

US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner continued their discussions with Putin on Wednesday. This marks one of the first high-level diplomatic pushes between Washington and Moscow since Trump returned to office.

Trump described his delegation's Moscow visit as productive but remained cautious about expectations. "They had a very good meeting yesterday with President Putin," Trump said, but quickly added: "What's the outcome of this meeting? I can't tell you."

The talks come as the war in Ukraine enters its third year, with both sides facing mounting pressure to find some path forward. Russia has consistently demanded Ukraine give up territory it currently occupies, while Ukraine has refused to cede land to end the conflict.

For markets and global investors, any sign of serious peace talks tends to influence energy prices and European stocks. But Trump's honest admission that he doesn't know what comes next suggests these early conversations are more about testing the waters than hammering out concrete deals.

The involvement of Kushner, who has extensive business experience but limited diplomatic background in this region, signals Trump may be taking a different approach than traditional State Department channels. Whether Putin's apparent willingness to meet translates into meaningful concessions remains the big question mark hanging over these efforts.