1 month ago
5
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump said Monday that Russia and Ukraine volition "immediately" statesman ceasefire negotiations aft what helium described arsenic an "excellent" telephone with Russian President Vladimir Putin that lasted much than 2 hours.
Trump besides spoke with with Ukrainian person Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders successful hopes of making advancement toward a ceasefire.
"The conditions for that volition beryllium negotiated betwixt the 2 parties, arsenic it tin lone be, due to the fact that they cognize details of a dialog that cipher other would beryllium alert of," Trump said successful a societal media post. The conversations came aft the White House said the U.S. person has grown "frustrated" with some leaders implicit the continuing warfare successful Ukraine.
After the call, Putin said Russia was acceptable to proceed discussing an extremity to the fighting, but helium indicated determination was nary large breakthrough successful what helium termed a "very informative and precise frank" speech with Trump. Putin said the warring countries should "find compromises that would suit each parties."
"At the aforesaid time, I would similar to enactment that, successful general, Russia's presumption is clear. The main happening for america is to destruct the basal causes of this crisis," the Russian president said.
Trump has struggled to extremity a warfare that began with Russia's penetration successful February 2022. That makes these conversations a superior trial of his estimation arsenic a woody shaper aft having claimed helium would rapidly settee the struggle erstwhile helium was backmost successful the White House, if not adjacent earlier helium took office.
Trump expressed his hopes for a "productive day" Monday - and a ceasefire - successful a societal media station implicit the weekend. His effort volition besides see calls to NATO leaders. But up of the call, Vice President JD Vance said Trump is "more than open" to walking distant from trying to extremity the warfare if helium feels Putin isn't superior astir negotiation.
"He's grown weary and frustrated with some sides of the conflict," White House property caput Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday up of the call. "He has made it wide to some sides that helium wants to spot a peaceful solution and ceasefire arsenic soon arsenic possible."
The Republican president is banking connected the thought that his unit of property and idiosyncratic past with Putin volition beryllium capable to interruption immoderate impasse implicit a intermission successful the fighting.
"I'd accidental we're much than unfastened to walking away," Vance told reporters earlier leaving Rome aft gathering with Pope Leo XIV. Vance said Trump has been wide that the U.S. "is not going to rotation its wheels here. We privation to spot outcomes."
Trump's "sensibilities are that he's got to get connected the telephone with President Putin, and that is going to wide up immoderate of the logjam and get america to the spot that we request to get to," said Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff. "I deliberation it's going to beryllium a precise palmy call."
Trump's vexation builds implicit nonaccomplishment to extremity war
Still, determination are fears that Trump has an affinity for Putin that could enactment Ukraine astatine a disadvantage with immoderate agreements engineered by the U.S. government.
Bridget Brink said she resigned past period arsenic the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine "because the argumentation since the opening of the medication was to enactment unit connected the unfortunate Ukraine, alternatively than connected the aggressor, Russia."
Brink said the motion that she needed to depart was an Oval Office gathering successful February wherever Trump and his squad openly berated Zelenskyy for not being sufficiently deferential to them.
"I judge that bid astatine immoderate terms is not bid astatine all," Brink said. "It's appeasement, and arsenic we cognize from history, appeasement lone leads to much war."
Trump's vexation astir the warfare had been gathering earlier his station Saturday connected Truth Social astir the coming calls.
Trump said his treatment with Putin would absorption connected stopping the "bloodbath" of the war. It besides volition screen trade, a motion that Trump mightiness beryllium seeking to usage fiscal incentives to broker immoderate benignant of statement aft Russia's penetration led to terrible sanctions by the United States and
its allies that person steadily eroded Moscow's quality to grow.
Trump's hope, according to the post, is that "a warfare that should person ne'er happened volition end."
Vance said Trump would property Putin connected whether helium was superior astir negotiating an extremity to the conflict, saying Trump doesn't judge helium is and that Trump whitethorn lavation his hands of trying to extremity the war.
"It takes 2 to tango," Vance said, adding that "if Russia is not consenting to bash that, past we're yet conscionable going to person to say, this is not our war. It's Joe Biden's war, it's Vladimir Putin's war."
His treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said Sunday connected NBC's "Meet the Press" that Trump had made it wide that a nonaccomplishment by Putin to negociate "in bully faith" could pb to further sanctions against Russia.
Bessent suggested the sanctions that began during the medication of Democratic President Joe Biden were inadequate due to the fact that they did not halt Russia's lipid revenues, owed to concerns that doing truthful would summation U.S. prices. The United States sought to headdress Russia's lipid revenues portion preserving the country's petroleum exports to bounds the harm from the ostentation that the warfare produced.
No ceasefire but an speech of prisoners
Putin precocious rejected an connection by Zelenskyy to conscionable in-person successful Turkey arsenic an alternate to a 30-day ceasefire urged by Ukraine and its Western allies, including Washington. Instead, Russian and Ukrainian officials met successful Istanbul for talks, the archetypal specified nonstop negotiations since March 2022.
Those talks ended Friday aft little than 2 hours, without a ceasefire successful place. Still, some countries committed to speech 1,000 prisoners of warfare each, with Ukraine's quality chief, Kyrylo Budanov, saying connected Ukrainian tv Saturday that the exchanges could hap arsenic aboriginal arsenic this week.
While wrapping up his four-day travel to the Middle East, Trump said Friday that Putin had not gone to Turkey due to the fact that Trump himself wasn't there.
"He and I volition meet, and I deliberation we'll lick it oregon possibly not," Trump told reporters aft boarding Air Force One. "At slightest we'll know. And if we don't lick it, it'll beryllium precise interesting."
Zelenskyy met with Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio successful Rome connected Sunday, arsenic good arsenic European leaders, intensifying his efforts earlier the Monday calls.
The Ukrainian president said connected the societal media tract X that during his talks with the American officials, they discussed the negotiations successful Turkey and that "the Russians sent a debased level delegation of non-decision-makers." He besides said helium stressed that Ukraine is engaged successful "real diplomacy" to person a ceasefire.
"We person besides touched upon the request for sanctions against Russia, bilateral trade, defence cooperation, battlefield concern and upcoming prisoners exchange," Zelenskyy said. "Pressure is needed against Russia until they are anxious to halt the war."
The German authorities said Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French, British and Italian leaders spoke with Trump precocious Sunday astir the concern successful Ukraine and his upcoming telephone with Putin. A little connection gave nary details of the conversation, but said the program is for the speech to beryllium continued straight aft the Trump-Putin call.
Witkoff spoke Sunday connected ABC's "This Week" and Brink appeared connected CBS' "Face the Nation."
Copyright © 2025 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
