Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, during his last conversation with US President Donald Trump, insisted that he meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky one-on-one, even though the American leader offered to arrange a tripartite summit. This is reported by Politico citing a senior official from the American administration.

US administration's reaction to the summit in Washington

It is noted that during a summit in Washington involving the leaders of the United States, Ukraine, and European countries, which took place on August 18, Trump called Putin. The US president suggested that the Russian dictator arrange a trilateral meeting with Zelensky, but Putin replied that the American leader did not need to come.

According to the source, Trump's team then began working on the issue. The US president's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, was also tasked with resolving some of the differences between the parties.

"The point of convening the Europeans was to say, 'We're in charge here, you're going to sign off on whatever we say.' The Europeans were positive, but they're exhausting," a Trump administration official told reporters, speaking about the summit in Washington.

Trump administration believes Putin is ready for peace

According to him, the White House was generally satisfied with how the meeting went. He also assured that the Trump administration had allayed any concerns about how the meeting in Alaska went after the US President's phone call with Putin on August 18.

"After Alaska, we were glad that Putin was at least talking and there were signs that we could negotiate," the official shared.

Another Trump administration official noted that Putin was the first to talk about security guarantees for Ukraine, instead of rejecting all offers, and said the Alaska meeting helped to do that.

"If Alaska had not been successful and Putin had not given us a small opportunity, we would not have invited the Europeans to the White House. He (Putin - UNIAN) will conduct tough negotiations, but this opportunity is huge," the official said.

US President's associate Steve Bannon, speaking to reporters, said that Trump is doing much more for Ukraine than Europe, although the Russian-Ukrainian war is a"European problem." He added:

"We have all the leverage here. If we don't fund this, it will stop. The only way to move this forward - the only way to continue this every day - is with American money and American weapons. The Europeans don't have enough military equipment or financial resources."

Bannon also expressed hope that Trump would "stop listening to Senators Lindsey Graham, Tom Cotton, and Mitch McConnell" and understand that the United States cannot provide any security guarantees to Ukraine, as this would"inextricably link America to this conflict."

Zelenskyy and Putin's meeting - important news

Earlier, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that meeting of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy's meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin could take place by the end of August. According to him, US President Donald Trump has agreed to a meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents within the next two weeks. Merz noted that the location of the meeting has not yet been determined.

In addition, Reuters, citing a senior US administration official, wrote that the meeting between Zelensky and Putin may take place in Hungary Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with the LCI television channel that the meeting could take place in Geneva.