The venue for the summit has yet to be determined.
"As President Trump said yesterday (Aug.6), the Russians have expressed a desire to meet with him, and the president is open to this meeting. President Trump would like to meet with both President Putin and President Zelenskyy because he wants this brutal war to end," said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
She promised to provide details of the potential summit later.
On Aug. 6, Trump told European leaders in a telephone conversation that he wanted to meet with Putin as soon as next week, hoping to hold a trilateral summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy afterward.
According to a White House official, Trump urged his aides to begin planning immediately, a process that normally requires significant time.
State Secretary Marco Rubio acknowledged that "a lot has to happen" before a trilateral meeting between Trump, Putin and Zelenskyy.
"There are still many impediments to overcome, and we hope to do that in the next few days and hours," he said, adding that the meeting between Putin and Witkoff helped the U.S. understand better the Russian conditions for ending the war.