White House: Trump-Putin talks bring peace closer than ever

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that "we have never been closer to a peace agreement than now" when commenting on the planned phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

She made this statement during a briefing.

Leavitt declined to share details about what Trump and Putin will discuss but emphasized that "we are 10 yards away from peace."

"I won’t get ahead of these negotiations, but I can say that we are at the 10-yard line of peace, and we have never been closer to a peace agreement than now," said the White House press secretary.

According to her, Trump will address the issue of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which was previously a topic of discussion with Ukraine.

When asked by journalists whether Trump would impose sanctions on Russia if the conversation with Putin does not go as expected, Leavitt responded that the U.S. president is prepared to do so "if necessary."

She stated that she "cannot confirm" whether the U.S. is withdrawing from the International Center for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine but promised to verify this information.

• U.S. President Donald Trump announced that on Tuesday, March 18, he plans to hold talks with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin regarding ending the war in Ukraine, as well as discussing territorial issues and nuclear power plants.