U.S. Arrangements for a Trump-Putin-Zelenskiy Summit to End Ukraine War

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe proposed holding a trilateral summit bringing together U.S. President Donald Trump, his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to advance efforts to end the war in Ukraine, according to Axios on Sunday.

Two sources familiar with the matter revealed that Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow earlier this week aimed partly at determining whether Russian intelligence chiefs could help persuade President Putin to move toward resuming negotiations with Ukraine under American mediation.

Ratcliffe visited Moscow on Tuesday and met with Russia’s foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin and head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) Alexander Bortnikov.

According to Axios, this marks the first time Ratcliffe has personally engaged in diplomatic efforts aimed at achieving a breakthrough in efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

U.S. President had told Axios days earlier that Ratcliffe’s visit was "routine" and not intended to warn Russia against attacking NATO member territory.

The Trump administration previously floated the idea of such a summit, with Zelenskiy expressing agreement while Putin rejected it. According to sources, U.S. officials informed Zelenskiy that Ratcliffe raised during his Moscow talks the possibility of reviving peace negotiations.

The sources said Ratcliffe concluded that Bortnikov represents a constructive party capable of helping restart diplomatic efforts.

The New York Times reported that Ratcliffe gave Bortnikov a "gloomy assessment" of the war’s status and urged Russia to reach an agreement before its situation deteriorates further.

On Friday, U.S. officials briefed Zelenskiy on details of Ratcliffe’s Moscow meetings, along with the proposal to hold a trilateral summit.

Ukrainian officials, however, expressed deep skepticism about Putin’s intentions, stating they possess intelligence indicating that the Russian president is planning a major escalation in the war.

Pavlo Palisa, deputy head of Zelenskiy’s office, told reporters on Friday that Putin had ordered his military to prepare multiple operational scenarios for launching an attack on northern Ukraine, with Kyiv and Chernihiv identified as key operational zones.

U.S.-mediated negotiations between Russia and Ukraine stalled in mid-February following the outbreak of war with Iran.

Over recent months, White House envoys Steve Wicklow and Jared Kushner held separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, but these communications yielded only limited progress, according to Axios.

Ukrainian presidential chief Kirill Budanov speculated that negotiations with Russia under American mediation might resume in September, while the Kremlin declined to comment on holding talks soon.