Former U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
Following the call, Trump directed senior U.S. officials to initiate negotiations aimed at bringing the conflict to an end. The conversation came as Trump’s defense secretary suggested Kyiv should abandon its NATO membership aspirations and relinquish its claims to Russian-occupied territories—marking a significant shift in Washington’s stance.
After speaking with Putin for over an hour, Trump stated that the Russian leader, who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, is willing to end the war. They also discussed the possibility of a ceasefire in the near future.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said, “President Putin wants this war to end. He does not want the fighting to resume six months later.”
He added that efforts toward peace are underway, emphasizing that both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky share a desire for resolution. “I just want to stop people from being killed,” Trump asserted.
