United States President, Donald Trump, announced on Monday that Russia and Ukraine are set to begin immediate negotiations toward a ceasefire, following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
However, the Kremlin later noted that the peace process would require time, and Trump signaled hesitation to align with European allies on imposing new sanctions against Moscow.
In a social media statement, Trump revealed that he had shared the development with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy and leaders from the EU, France, Germany, Finland, and Italy during a group call held after his conversation with Putin.
“Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War,” Trump stated. He later told reporters at the White House that he believed “some progress is being made.”
Putin, speaking from Sochi on Russia’s Black Sea coast, expressed appreciation for Trump’s support of resumed direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv, following last week’s meeting in Turkey, their first in-person discussion since March 2022.
He tempered expectations, however, saying efforts were “generally on the right track.”
“We have agreed with the president of the United States that Russia will propose and is ready to work with the Ukrainian side on a memorandum on a possible future peace accord,” Putin added.
Despite the renewed dialogue and signs of movement, Monday’s diplomatic push fell short of delivering a significant breakthrough after more than three years of war.
German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, shared via X that European leaders resolved to ramp up pressure on Russia through sanctions after Trump updated them on his talk with Putin.
However, Trump appeared reluctant to adopt the same approach. When asked why he had not followed through on previous threats to sanction Moscow, Trump replied, “Well because I think there’s a chance of getting something done, and if you do that, you can also make it much worse. But there could be a time where that’s going to happen.”
He went on to note the complexity of the situation, “There are some big egos involved.” Trump warned that without tangible progress, “I’m just going to back away,” asserting, “This is not my war.”
While Ukraine and several European leaders have urged Russia to implement a ceasefire immediately, Trump has concentrated on securing a 30-day truce—a proposal that Putin has not yet accepted, citing preconditions.
According to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, the U.S. and Russian presidents did not outline any specific timeline for a ceasefire.
However, they did broach the topic of a prisoner exchange involving nine Russians and nine Americans. Ushakov said Trump was optimistic about future U.S.-Russia relations, describing them as holding “impressive” prospects.
Russian media quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying the peace process would involve “complex contacts” to create a mutually agreeable ceasefire memorandum.
“There are no deadlines and there cannot be any. It is clear that everyone wants to do this as quickly as possible, but, of course, the devil is in the details,” Peskov told RIA.
Former Swedish Prime Minister, Carl Bildt, offered a sobering analysis on X, saying the call was “undoubtedly a win for Putin.”
He argued that Putin “deflected the call for an … immediate ceasefire and instead can continue military operations at the same time as he puts pressure on at the negotiating table.”
Following his conversation with Trump, Zelenskiy suggested the possibility of a broader summit involving Ukraine, Russia, the U.S., the EU, and the U.K. to advance the peace initiative.
“Ukraine is ready for direct negotiations with Russia in any format that brings results,” Zelenskiy posted on X, mentioning Turkey, Switzerland, or the Vatican as potential hosts.
Trump stated that Pope Leo had shown interest in hosting talks at the Vatican, though Vatican officials had not responded to inquiries.
Peskov confirmed that the idea was discussed and welcomed by Moscow, though no venue had yet been agreed upon.
A source familiar with the group call involving Trump, Zelenskiy, and European leaders said some participants were “shocked” by Trump’s unwillingness to apply further sanctions on Russia.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen simply described the conversation as “good” in a post on X, emphasizing it was “important that the U.S. stays engaged.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials and their allies continued to accuse Moscow of stalling, making just enough diplomatic effort to deter Trump from escalating economic pressure.
Despite Trump’s influence in getting both sides to the table for last week’s talks in Istanbul, the meeting ended without progress. Hopes for a Zelenskiy-Putin face-to-face were dashed when Putin declined the proposal.
Putin, whose military controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory and continues advancing, has maintained firm demands, including Ukrainian troop withdrawals from four contested regions.
He said the proposed memorandum would detail “a number of positions, such as, for example, the principles of settlement, the timing of a possible peace agreement.”
“The main thing for us is to eliminate the root causes of this crisis,” Putin concluded. “We just need to determine the most effective ways to move towards peace.”
