White House clarifies Witkoff, not Trump, spoke to Putin

US President Donald Trump said on Friday there is a "very good chance" the war between Russia and Ukraine can end after Washington had "productive" discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

"We had very good and productive discussions with President Vladimir Putin of Russia yesterday, and there is a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end," Trump said in a Truth Social post.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt later told reporters that Trump had not spoken with Putin on Thursday, but that US envoy Steve Witkoff had.

Witkoff had a long meeting with Putin in Moscow on Thursday night, according to a source briefed on the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.