'I am ready...': Zelenskyy proposes three-way meet with Trump and Putin

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with his US President Donald Trump (Courtesy: Reuters file photo)

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed a three-summit with US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to discuss ending the war between Russia and Ukraine as it enters its third year.

Zelenskyy said he was open to any form of engagement, he told news agency AFP. "If Putin is not comfortable with a bilateral meeting, or if anyone wants it to be a trilateral meeting, I don't mind. I am ready for any format," he said.

Further, Zelenskyy has accused Russia of delaying the peace negotiations as Ukraine is yet to receive the 'memorandum' from Moscow detailing its demands for a possible ceasefire.

“They said they would convey what they see as the next steps and whether Russia is capable of supporting a ceasefire. Once we receive the document, we'll respond," said Zelenskyy.

Meanwhile, Russia continues to advance in the Sumy region, with over 50,000 troops reportedly near the northeastern border. In turn, Ukraine launched around 300 drones targeting Russian positions, however, Moscow claimed minimal dmages.

Putin has refused to meet Zelensky without a prior agreement, while trump has shown frustration over the lack of progress from both sides.

The United States and Russia quarrelled in public on Wednesday over the intensifying Ukraine war after U.S. President Donald Trump warned that President Vladimir Putin was "playing with fire" and Moscow massed 50,000 troops near a Ukrainian region.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, said that Putin was playing with fire and cautioned that "REALLY BAD" things would have happened already to Russia if it was not for Trump himself.

"What Vladimir Putin doesn't realize is that if it weren't for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened in Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He's playing with fire," Trump said in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.