Mr. Witkoff, would you take a couple quick questions?
Sure.
Do you mind coming over to the -- the mic right here very briefly? I'm sorry? AP, CNN. AP, CNN. Can you stand by -- Congratulations. OK. Are you -- has the president now empowered you to handle more of the Russia, Ukraine portfolio now in addition to the Middle East?
He empowered me to go over to Russia and see if we could get Marc Fogel out. So that's about -- that's -- that's -- that was the assignment. That's what I did. Do you think you'll be handling though more of the, you know, negotiations, discussions around trying to find an end to the war in Russia and Ukraine?
The -- the way it generally is with President Trump is he asks and we say yes.
Could you tell us a little bit more about Marc Fogel? Where is he now? Did he actually get a tour of the Lincoln Bedroom last night? Is he with his family? Is he getting a medical evaluation?
That I can definitely comment on. I know where he is, but I don't want to say.
OK.
He did get a tour of the Lincoln Bedroom which was pretty fabulous. I had never -- I'd never seen it. So, it was great to see. He talked to his wife. He talked to his 95-year-old mom. By the way, I have a 92-year-old mom. So, maybe we'll have to introduce them and he talked to his two children last night.
So, I think he is, I don't know, it's hard for me to describe his feelings. He's -- you heard it at the press conference. He was so grateful to the president and so grateful to the people of this country for supporting him.
For the European television, I'm asking the question. How -- the president, the kind of involvement the Europe, the president want from Europe, are we going to see the president asking for more to be done for the European Union in Ukraine? And how close are to a peace deal?
Well, I'm not -- I'm really not familiar with what the -- what the next moves of the president are. I think he's probably going to want to think about it today. I think right now, he feels that the important story is Mark Fogel coming home. He was away for three and a half years, away from his family. He's in his 60s. It's cold over there.
He's got some infirmities, but he's going to get through them. He's got a great attitude. And I think the president is just thrilled that he could reach out and -- and do this for the Fogel family. And so, hopefully it's an inspiration for everybody.
Another important topic is Israel-Hamas. There's some concerns about the two sides being on the verge of war. Do you have any perspective on that?
Well, I -- my perspective is again, the perspective of the president that Hamas is a terrorist organization and that they can't be allowed to be a part of the government in Gaza. It's an unhealthy situation and they need to go. And the president said all that -- that we all need to know, which is Saturday, 12:00, he expects there to be something different occurring.
And if it's not, then there's going to be a big problem.
Can I ask you? I'm not sure if this has been touched on yet, but just the details around the release. Russia is saying that there is an exchange happening with the Russian release of one of their prisoners for Vogel. So, is this an exchange? I know others, Secretary Rubio was saying that this wasn't a one for one situation.
You know, I don't -- I don't want to comment on that. I'm not sure what's happening in the United States today. I -- I think that getting Marc Vogel out was critical and the Russians were very, very helpful in that effort and very accommodating. And I think that's maybe a -- a sign about how that working relationship between President Trump and President Putin will be in the future and what that may portend for the world at large for -- for conflict and so forth.
I think they had a great friendship. And I think now it's going to continue and it's a really good thing for the world.
Can you speak to how many times President Trump has spoken to Putin?
I can't because I don't know.
And any more details just in terms of your own visit, in your own private plane, how this felt and just how many have you been able to retrieve so far? Ten?
It felt -- it felt like I was blessed. Like somebody reached down and touched me and said, "You get to go do this and -- or implement it on behalf of the president." And it felt that I was touched and blessed as a result.
Is there any opening for the Egyptian to house some Palestinians during the [Inaudible] of Gaza?
Well, I don't -- I don't want to comment on that. I mean, the Egyptians are really good people. They've had a really important role in the Phase One negotiations and so many other things. I met with the foreign minister the other day. He's a just a good decent man. I've talked to General Hassan, the head of intelligence.
He's a good decent man. Everybody is just well motivated. And so, hopefully all of that brings along a much better result on the balance of Phase One and what can happen in Phase Two.
Who did you meet with on the ground? Who did you work with on the ground in Russia and helping secure the release of Mr. Fogel?
Well, there's a gentleman from Russia. His name is Kirill and he had a lot to do with this. And he -- he was important. He was an -- an important interlocutor bridging the two sides. And so, I would point that out, but I would also say that His Highness, Mohammed bin Salman from Saudi Arabia, he was instrumental as well.
He has a very strong friendship with President Trump and behind the scenes, he was encouraging and pushing and -- and looking for the right result and it -- it was helpful. It really was.
Was he pushing the Russians?
I think that he was just -- I -- I just think that he was a -- a cheerleader for the deal. He was a cheerleader for this ara proch mo where they would -- the two leaders would come together and that's what happened. So, thank God, sometimes you don't get a good result. Here we got a very good result and Marc Fogel is the evidence of that.
Do you know what your next trip is, Steve?
I don't think I have one. It'll be as -- it'll be as directed. President Trump, he winds me up, points me.
[Inaudible] anything we have [Inaudible]?
I don't know yet, yes.
But maybe in the Middle East [Inaudible]?
It could happen there. It could happen -- I don't -- you know, it -- it's much more about their schedules and so forth, but they had a great relationship in -- in the First Presidency. And I think if -- if the -- if the 2020 would have been different, which we all think it should have been, then maybe we wouldn't be in Ukraine today.
Maybe that wouldn't have happened.
My bet is that it would have never happened under his watch, and I think that, that hopefully portends a quick resolution of the conflict over there. It just shouldn't have been. It's a -- it's effectively a NATO war and it just makes no sense to me. And I think it makes no sense to the -- to the president.
And that's not because I'm saying. It's because he said it time and time again. Thank you.
Thank you.