"I will meet Donald with pleasure" – that's what President Putin expressed Wednesday in a brief televised interview with RT. He further outlined some conditions for such a meeting, saying that it can't just involve sitting for some tea or coffee, but both the Russian and American diplomatic teams which met in Riyadh the day prior must thoroughly prepare to negotiate issues most important to each, particularly the Ukraine crisis.
Interestingly, Putin described that Trump's timetable for achieving peace in Ukraine changed and this was inevitable and 'natural' – given that upon entering office he was able to see the fuller scope of intelligence information, and the greater complexities of the conflict. Putin made mention of the potential for peace within six months (referencing the White House change), in contrast to Trump on the campaign trail talking just 'days'.
Putin also called the Trump team 'completely different' in terms of positive openness and willingness to work with Moscow, in contrast to the prior Biden administration, and given the Riyadh meeting took place without bias and on "friendly" terms, and with no "condemnation of what had been done in the past" – meaning the two sides showed willingness to move forward and not rehash a blame-game.
Of the Tuesday Saudi-hosted talks, which lasted four-and-half hours, Putin described: "It is impossible to solve many issues, including the Ukrainian crisis, without increasing trust between Russia and the United States" – and stressed that the process is about restoring this trust, toward a resolution of the conflict.
He was further quoted in Interfax saying of the talks: "Yes, I have been informed. I rate them highly, there are results."
As for Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, his follow-up assessment after leading the delegation in Riyadh was as follows: "Moscow and Washington need to clean up the legacy of former US President Joe Biden's administration, which ruined the foundation of long-lasting cooperation between the two countries."
"For now, it is necessary to clean up the legacy of the Biden administration, which did everything to destroy even the first hints at, the very foundation of long-term partnership between our countries," Lavrov added.
Meanwhile, without doubt Kremlin leaders are enjoying Trump's fresh blasting of Zelensky. Trump in a Wednesday post on Truth Social called the Ukrainian President a "modestly successful comedian" who essentially tricked the US into spending hundreds of billions for a war that "couldn't be won" and should have never started. Trump further referenced "A Dictator without Elections" said the Ukrainian leader "better move fast" or he "won't have a country left."
Likely this will only add to Putin's willingness to meet with Trump, which would be a first since 2021. Putin's spokesman on Wednesday remained cautiously optimistic:
“Maybe. Or maybe not,” Peskov said, responding to a question about the possibility of the Trump-Putin summit in February.
Peskov described the meeting in Riyadh as a “very, very important step” toward resolving the Ukraine conflict, while emphasizing that “naturally, it’s impossible to fix everything in a day or a week. There is still a long road ahead.”
But Trump said after the Riyadh talks that he feels "much more confident" about brokering a deal to end the Ukraine conflict. Additionally, goodwill and trust was build when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth made clear while in Germany last week that Ukraine will not be joining NATO, which has been a crucial request of Moscow from the start.
Given that Trump is now outright personally insulting Zelensky for mismanagement of the war and of his country, this could actually serve to hasten a face-to-face Putin-Trump meeting. Both sides have signaled it could happen by month's end. Peskov has affirmed both sides are preparing for the bilateral presidential summit.