Putin tests Trump's patience by slow-walking ceasefire talks

The Trump administration's informal end-of-April deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine is drawing near without any commitments from the Kremlin.Why it matters: U.S.-Russia talks have shown little clear progress and President Trump's promise of a swift peace deal appears nowhere near fruition. Still, he insisted Thursday that a ceasefire was getting closer and that he'd be "hearing from Russia this week."Behind the scenes: White House envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than four hours last Friday in St. Petersburg.Witkoff said he emerged with a clearer idea of Putin's demands for a peace settlement. But he didn't get Putin's approval for a 30-day ceasefire plan Trump has been pushing for six weeks as a first step toward longer-term peace, and which Ukraine has signed off on.State of play: Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke on Thursday with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and stressed Russia needs to commit to the U.S. ceasefire framework.U.S. officials have described the end of April as an informal deadline, after which Russia could face fresh sanctions.But while Putin launched the war and is the biggest barrier to a ceasefire, Trump continues to put much of the blame on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "You don't start a war with someone 20 times your size and then hope people give you some missiles," Trump said of Zelensky earlier this week.Driving the news: Rubio, Witkoff and Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg held a marathon of meetings in Paris on Thursday with French President Emanuel Macron and senior officials from Ukraine, Germany and the U.K."It was the first peace negotiation meeting on Ukraine that brings all together Europeans, Americans, and Ukrainians around the table," a French official said. The French official said the discussions focused on plans for a comprehensive ceasefire, including on the front line, and also on the parameters for a deal that could end the war."The participants expressed support to President Trump's objective to put a swift end to the war and agreed on the need of a ceasefire as quickly as possible," the official said. The other side: When Rubio called Lavrov after the meeting, the Russian foreign minister said Moscow was ready to work with the U.S. "with the aim of reliably eliminating the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis," according to Moscow's readout.The statement didn't mention a ceasefire.The big picture: Another round of talks between U.S., European and Ukrainian officials is expected to take place next week in London. A European official said these talks represent a positive shift in the way the U.S. has been willing to discuss the Ukraine-Russia issue with its European allies. A European official said the talks represent a positive shift in the Trump administration's dealings with its European allies over Ukraine, and that the gathering in Paris was the first substantive discussion of the issue between the sides.What to watch: While the ceasefire efforts are still stuck, Trump said the U.S. and Ukraine will sign a long-awaited minerals deal next Thursday.

The Trump administration's informal end-of-April deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine is drawing near without any commitments from the Kremlin.Why it matters: U.S.

-Russia talks have shown little clear progress and President Trump's promise of a swift peace deal appears nowhere near fruition. Still, he insisted Thursday that a ceasefire was getting closer and that he'd be "hearing from Russia this week."Behind the scenes: White House envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than four hours last Friday in St.

Petersburg.Witkoff said he emerged with a clearer idea of Putin's demands for a peace settlement. But he didn't get Putin's approval for a 30-day ceasefire plan Trump has been pushing for six weeks as a first step toward longer-term peace, and which Ukraine has signed off on.

State of play: Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke on Thursday with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and stressed Russia needs to commit to the U.S. ceasefire framework.

U.S. officials have described the end of April as an informal deadline, after which Russia could face fresh sanctions.

But while Putin launched the war and is the biggest barrier to a ceasefire, Trump continues to put much of the blame on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "You don't start a war with someone 20 times your size and then hope people give you some missiles," Trump said of Zelensky earlier this week.Driving the news: Rubio, Witkoff and Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg held a marathon of meetings in Paris on Thursday with French President Emanuel Macron and senior officials from Ukraine, Germany and the U.

K."It was the first peace negotiation meeting on Ukraine that brings all together Europeans, Americans, and Ukrainians around the table," a French official said. The French official said the discussions focused on plans for a comprehensive ceasefire, including on the front line, and also on the parameters for a deal that could end the war.

"The participants expressed support to President Trump's objective to put a swift end to the war and agreed on the need of a ceasefire as quickly as possible," the official said. The other side: When Rubio called Lavrov after the meeting, the Russian foreign minister said Moscow was ready to work with the U.S.

"with the aim of reliably eliminating the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis," according to Moscow's readout.The statement didn't mention a ceasefire.The big picture: Another round of talks between U.

S., European and Ukrainian officials is expected to take place next week in London. A European official said these talks represent a positive shift in the way the U.

S. has been willing to discuss the Ukraine-Russia issue with its European allies. A European official said the talks represent a positive shift in the Trump administration's dealings with its European allies over Ukraine, and that the gathering in Paris was the first substantive discussion of the issue between the sides.

What to watch: While the ceasefire efforts are still stuck, Trump said the U.S. and Ukraine will sign a long-awaited minerals deal next Thursday.

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