Trump announces that Rubio will take part in talks on Ukraine in Turkey

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will participate in Ukraine war talks this week in Turkey, and expressed optimism about that step.

"The talks will be held in Turkey later this week, probably Thursday, and they could have some pretty good results," Trump said in a speech in Riyadh. "Marco is going there," the president added.

Zelensky called for Trump's participation in peace talks in Turkey

Hours earlier Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Trump to attend the Ukraine-Russia talks, considering that this would prompt Vladimir Putin to do the same.

For the past two days the Kremlin has maintained uncertainty about Putin’s possible presence at these negotiations, which would constitute the first direct talks between the countries in conflict, since the Russian invasion in the spring of 2022.

On Monday, Donald Trump urged Zelensky and Putin to participate in the negotiations and explained that he was also "considering" the possibility of traveling to Turkey himself.

Ukraine says Putin "does not want to end the invasion"

During a press conference on Tuesday the Ukrainian leader said he was convinced that his Russian counterpart does not want to put an end to the invasion of Ukraine.

"I think Putin does not want the war to end, he does not want a ceasefire, he does not want negotiations," he stressed.

Should the Russian president refuse to engage, Zelensky called on his Western partners to implement the "strongest" sanctions ever imposed against Moscow.