Ukraine peace talks dealt massive blow as frustrated Trump's team takes major step back

By Alice Scarsi, World News Editor, Emily Wright, World News Reporter

Donald Trump wants the war in Ukraine to end (Image: Getty)

Donald Trump's hopes for a swift peace deal to end the war in Ukraine appear to have almost entirely vanished, as the US has announced it will scale back its direct role as mediator. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said on Friday, May 2: " He (Donald Trump) knows also that there is another part of the world, a whole globe that needs some attention".

"We are not going to fly around the world at the drop of a hat to mediate meetings; that is now between the two parties, and now is the time that they need to present and develop concrete ideas about how this conflict is going to end," Bruce told reporters. The comments mark a significant shift to Washington's approach, after weeks of stalled diplomacy aimed at negotiating a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.

The US will scale back its direct role as a mediator, a State Department spokesperson said. (Image: Getty)

Mr Trump and Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, had both previously warned that the US would withdraw from mediation efforts if no meaningful progress was made.

President Trump has been growing increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr Trump said he was “very angry” when Putin criticised the credibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s leadership.

On May 1, hours before the US withdrawal from the role of mediator was announced, Vice President JD Vance told Fox News that the war in Ukraine is unlikely to end "any time soon".

It is "going to be up to the Russians and Ukrainians now that each side knows what the other's terms for peace are. It's going to be up to them to come to an agreement and stop this brutal, brutal conflict," Vance said.

The announcement comes not long after it was revealed that the Trump administration informed Congress it would approve arms exports worth at least $50million to Ukraine on Wednesday.