The world stage is heating up with a high-stakes diplomatic showdown. President Donald J. Trump, the man who’s never backed down from a challenge, is gearing up for a historic face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This could be a game-changer in the quest to end the brutal Russia-Ukraine war.

But will it deliver the peace America and the world are craving, or will it be another chapter in the Kremlin’s playbook of empty promises?

Moscow announced Thursday that President Trump and the Russian head of state have agreed in principle to hold a bilateral meeting in the coming days to address the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The high-stakes meeting would mark Trump's first meeting with Putin during his second term.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed the development, stating, "As for Ukrainian affairs directly, at the suggestion of the American side, an agreement was agreed upon in principle to hold a bilateral meeting at the highest level in the coming days, that is, a meeting of Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.”

Ushakov added that preparations are underway, with a venue already agreed upon, though details will be disclosed later.

"It is difficult to say how many days the preparation will take. But the option of holding the meeting during the next week was considered, and we are quite positive about this option," he said.

The announcement follows a Wednesday meeting in Moscow between Putin and Trump’s Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, which Trump described as "highly productive" in a Truth Social post.

"My Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, just had a highly productive meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Great progress was made! Afterwards, I updated some of our European Allies. Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" Trump wrote.

The President also expressed optimism about the potential for a broader meeting, stating, "There’s a very good chance we could be ending [this process]… There’s a good chance that there will be a meeting very soon."

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reinforced Trump’s commitment to peace, saying, "As President Trump said earlier today on TRUTH Social, great progress was made during Special Envoy Witkoff’s meeting with President Putin. The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the President is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky. President Trump wants this brutal war to end."

However, the Kremlin dismissed the possibility of a trilateral meeting involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"As for the option of a trilateral meeting, which for some reason was discussed yesterday in Washington, this option was simply mentioned by the American representative during the meeting in the Kremlin. But this option was not specifically discussed," Ushakov clarified. "The Russian side left this option completely, without comment

"We propose first of all to focus on preparing a bilateral meeting with D. Trump and we believe that the main thing is for this meeting to be successful and productive."

The U.S. has pushed for a trilateral format to include Zelensky, with Trump noting reporters Wednesday in the Oval Office, "There’s a very good prospect that they will" meet, though he cautioned, "I’ve been disappointed before with this one."

Recent patterns of Russian diplomacy – constructive talks followed by aggressive actions, such as overnight airstrikes on Ukraine – have fueled skepticism.

The Ukrainian air force reported neutralizing 89 of 112 Russian drones overnight into Thursday, with no cruise or ballistic missile launches, a less intense barrage compared to a massive attack last month involving 728 drones and 13 missiles.

President Trump has set a Friday deadline for progress on peace talks, vowing punitive measures if Russia fails to deliver.

Trump has already signed executive orders doubling tariffs on India, a major buyer of Russian oil, from 25% to 50% starting August 27, targeting Russia’s economic lifeline.

With Russia playing hardball and Zelensky on the sidelines, the road to peace is anything but smooth.

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