‘Like mixing oil and vinegar’: Donald Trump on Volodymyr Zelenskyy- Vladimir Putin meet; hesitant over his own attendance

US President Donald Trump on Friday likened the prospect of bringing Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy together for talks to “mixing oil and vinegar,” acknowledging fading hopes for such a meeting. When pressed about his own participation, he offered only a cautious “we’ll see.””We’re going to see if Putin and Zelensky will be working together. You know, it’s like oil and vinegar, a little bit. They don’t get along too well, for obvious reasons,” AFP quoted Trump saying.This comes a day after Trump took a diversion from his long-term peace stance on Russia-Ukraine war and hinted at letting Kyiv “fight back”.”It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country. It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offense. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia. Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND. How did that work out? Regardless, this is a war that would have NEVER happened if I were President – ZERO CHANCE. Interesting times ahead!!!” he had said in a post on Truth Social. Trump’s efforts at brokering peace in the Russia-Ukraine conflict have seen mixed signals in recent weeks. His meeting in Alaska with Putin ended without tangible progress, though he later indicated to Zelenskyy the possibility of a trilateral dialogue “if all went well.” Trump stressed that any solution should aim for a lasting peace rather than temporary arrangements, positioning himself as a potential mediator while maintaining his distance from direct military involvement. At the same time, Trump declared that US troops would not be deployed in Ukraine under any peace framework, though he noted that European allies appeared more open to committing forces as part of security guarantees. Washington, he added, would assist with logistical and material support. Russia, however, has firmly rejected any Western military presence in Ukraine, with foreign minister Sergey Lavrov insisting that Moscow must have veto power over any security arrangements. Moscow has further demanded a direct role in discussions, warning that leaving Russia out of talks on Ukraine’s future guarantees would be “a road to nowhere.”