Trump says Russia-Ukraine deal may be near after White House meeting with Putin envoy

US President Donald Trump has suggested that an agreement between Russia and Ukraine could be within reach, following talks at the White House with Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump declined to share specifics of his discussion with Dmitriev but expressed confidence about the prospects of a settlement. "I think we're going to be very close to settling Russia-Ukraine," he said.

"There's going to be an agreement. It's going to be a big agreement, and it's going to involve more than Ukraine," Trump added, noting that the effort could extend to "all of Europe".

Trump has repeatedly predicted that a deal to end the war, the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II, was close at hand. In recent weeks, however, diplomatic negotiations have gained momentum. The president said he did not meet with the Ukrainian delegation on Thursday.

His session with Dmitriev followed a separate diplomatic event hosted by First Lady Melania Trump, which brought Russian and Ukrainian representatives together at the White House. The gathering was intended to mark and build on a localized six-day truce she helped broker in October in the southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky. The president did not attend that event.

The temporary ceasefire, which ran from October 27 to November 1, enabled the evacuation of nearly 800 civilians from the besieged, Russian-occupied city in Ukraine's Kherson region and allowed critical food and medical supplies to be delivered.

Senior officials from both countries took part in Thursday's gathering. Alongside Dmitriev, attendees included Yana Lantratova, Russia's human rights commissioner; David Arakhamia, leader of the Servant of the People party in Ukraine's parliament; and Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's parliamentary human rights commissioner.

The White House described the occasion as "the first time in American history that a First Lady has personally brought representatives of two nations at war to the White House for diplomacy". In her remarks, Melania Trump urged both sides to treat the humanitarian truce in Oleshky "as a spark in a world of darkness", adding: "Together, we can create something more enduring than a temporary ceasefire."

The first lady handed the representatives of Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy large white envelopes containing personal letters, asking that they be delivered to each leader. Dmitriev presented her with a painting by an 11-year-old girl, while Zelenskyy sent her the Order of Princess Olga, a Ukrainian award recognizing her role in securing the ceasefire.