U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, told Fox News on April 2 that the United States aims to secure a full ceasefire in the ongoing war.
The countries are already approaching a ceasefire point, according to Kellogg, however, both sides will need to make compromises to reach an agreement.
Kellogg added that "neither side is going to get everything they want." In the meantime, Trump remains in contact with both President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, and he will be able to broker an agreement between the two countries.
"Trump is frustrated with both Zelensky and Putin as well, but we’re going to get there, and I think what we need to do is stay focused and stay on point (in order) to get where we want to go with ceasefire. Because what we want to have is a comprehensive 30-day ceasefire. Once you get there, it will be very hard to restart the war again," Kellogg said.
The U.S. and Ukraine reached an agreement on a full ceasefire on March 11, but Russia declined, agreeing only to a partial truce that excluded strikes on energy infrastructure and military activity in the Black Sea.
Since then, Kyiv has accused Moscow of breaching the energy-related pause, while the status of the Black Sea ceasefire remains unclear, as Russia continues to tie its extension to the easing of Western sanctions.
Although Trump has often highlighted his rapport with Vladimir Putin, he struck a more critical tone on March 30, accusing Russia of dragging out ceasefire negotiations and focusing excessively on undermining Zelensky.
The U.S. has also expanded its sanctions on Russian companies on April 2 while simultaneously removing restrictions on the wife of Boris Rotenberg, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Asami Terajima
