US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he would only meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin once the terms of a potential deal were clear. Moscow agrees that such a meeting must be carefully prepared, but the two sides mean very different things.
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For Washington, the goal is an immediate end to hostilities wherever they are taking place. Only after a ceasefire would the US allow others, particularly the Western Europeans, to take the lead in resolving the situation. Moscow, however, insists on addressing the root causes of the conflict first. This, Russian officials argue, requires a comprehensive, multifaceted package deal agreed upon in advance and not a hasty truce.