WASHINGTON

US President Donald Trump maintained Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will hold a face-to-face sit-down, but lamented that it has not yet transpired.

Trump was asked by a reporter about what it would take for the meeting to materialize, perhaps with him in attendance.

"It’s going to happen, but it should have happened three months ago. It’s going to happen," he said as he prepared to depart the White House for Scotland.

Earlier Friday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye will work to bring Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin together in Istanbul as part of ongoing negotiations aimed at resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

“This week, by holding talks with Putin and Trump, we will strive to see if we can bring these leaders together in Istanbul,” Erdogan told reporters after Friday prayer in Istanbul.

On Wednesday, Moscow and Kyiv held their third round of talks in Istanbul. The sides exchanged proposals for the future development of the peace process, and Kyiv proposed a leaders' summit at the end of August. The Kremlin says a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy is only possible to finalize a peace deal.