As the Donald Trump inauguration date comes closer, countries are clamoring to provide a middle ground for the much awaited peace talks between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. During last year’s electoral Presidential campaign, Donald Trump had consistently maintained that he will put an end to the long drawn Ukraine-Russia war.
Now both Switzerland and Serbia have offered to host a potential meeting between the incoming US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, several days after the possibility of such talks was raised.
Trump will be officially taking charge as the 47th President of the United States after his inauguration on January 20th. It was claimed last week that Trump’s team were working to schedule a meeting with Putin. The Republican leader hopes to use the occasion to make good on his promise to end the conflict that began in February 2022.
The Swiss Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that it had already expressed its willingness to host peace talks. Although an obstacle to the potential meeting could be an outstanding International Criminal Court arrest warrant against Putin.
Although Switzerland would be legally obliged to arrest Putin, Nicolas Bideau, the head of communications for the country’s Department of Foreign Affairs, said the Swiss authorities can grant exceptions for peace negotiations.
Meanwhile, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said on Sunday that his country would be an “extremely suitable” venue for such a meeting between Trump and Putin because of both men’s popularity there.
Speaking to the Serbian public broadcaster RTS, Vučić, who presents his country as a neutral in the struggle between Russia and the West, claimed Trump has more supporters in Serbia than in any other country outside the US.
“There is no country that can compare to Serbia in terms of the level of support for President Trump. And on the other hand, it is a country where President Putin is still very, very popular,” added Vučić, who has refused to join international sanctions against Moscow in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine. The Serbian president added that his country was also the ideal venue because it is not part of military alliances such as NATO.
Trump claimed last week that “Putin wants to meet”. The Kremlin responded by saying that it was open to talks. Meanwhile Trump’s National Security Adviser Mike Waltz confirmed that “preparations are under way” for a meeting between Trump and Putin. He said that the format of the meeting, including the possibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s participation, had not been set. Waltz, however, expects at least a phone call between Trump and Putin in “the coming days and weeks.”
The US president-elect has vowed to bring Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table, at one point claiming he could end the war within a day. Trump, who has been critical of US aid to Ukraine. The claims had been reasserted by his running mate JD Vance, although how they would manage a successful peace deal has not been elaborated by Trump’s team.
