Alaska [US], August 16 (HBTV): Negotiations with the American delegation in the 'narrow format' have concluded, the Kremlin said in a short statement, as reported by CNN.

The bilateral meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin lasted for more than three hours, CNN reported. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with other officials, were also present.

The fact that the two leaders had not moved on to their expanded bilateral luncheon after an hour and a half was seen as a sign that Trump, at least so far, did not feel compelled to 'walk,' as he had earlier promised to do if the talks were going poorly, according to CNN.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was not present for the meeting even as the two leaders discussed the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Trump had said that after the meeting, he would call Zelenskyy, as well as European leaders, to brief them on the results. He made it clear that his eventual goal is to bring Putin and Zelenskyy into the same room to discuss how to end the war.

Earlier on Wednesday, Trump had said that it could happen 'almost immediately' if the Alaska meeting went well, potentially even during this summit.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine's 'number one' demand of the Alaska summit is for Russia to agree to a ceasefire. According to Ukraine and its European allies, only a ceasefire can provide the basis for meaningful peace talks, CNN reported.

Following a call between Trump and European leaders on Wednesday, two European diplomats told CNN that Trump suggested he would push for a ceasefire at Thursday's talks. If Russia agrees to a ceasefire, Ukraine's next priority would be securing a seat at the table for future discussions. Kyiv is hoping today's talks are a prelude to a three-way summit between the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, and the US.

'Everything concerning Ukraine must be discussed exclusively with Ukraine,' Zelenskyy said after Wednesday's call with Trump, as quoted by CNN. 'We must prepare a trilateral format for talks.'

(ANI)