NEW YORK, January 9. /TASS/. US President Joe Biden's decision not to negotiate with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is the outgoing US leader's biggest mistake, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for special envoy on Ukraine Keith Kellogg said.

"I think the biggest mistake that President Biden has made is the fact that he has never engaged in any conversations with Putin. I mean, he hasn’t talked with him for over two years," he said in an interview with Fox News. "The president does talk to adversaries and allies alike, and he knows it’s a tough one, but he actually knows he needs to talk to people," the envoy pointed out.

Kellogg stressed that he believes the new administration will succeed in creating an environment in which Trump will have the opportunity to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky. "I think they are going to come to a solvable solution in the near term," he added, declining to give a timeline.

On Tuesday, Trump voiced his desire to hold talks with the Russian leader, admitting that it could happen in the next six months. Meanwhile, on January 5, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied claims that Putin's meetings with Trump and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz were being prepared.