US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed in a phone call on Wednesday to work together to end Russia’s war with Ukraine, with the White House calling the hour-long conversation “fantastic” and Zelenskyy calling it “probably his most substantive and positive to date”, adding that he did not feel pressured, according to Reuters and the British broadcaster BBC.
In their first conversation since the Oval Office heated exchange in February, Zelenskyy thanked Trump for US support, and the two leaders agreed that their teams would meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days.
“We tasked our teams to resolve technical issues related to the implementation and extension of the partial ceasefire. Ukrainian and American teams are ready to meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to continue coordinating steps towards peace,” Zelenskyy told on X.
Zelenskyy said that Kyiv would prepare a list of facilities that could be subject to a partial ceasefire that could be brokered by Washington. This list could include not only energy, but also rail and port infrastructure.
ON HIS SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM “TRUTH SOCIAL”, TRUMP WROTE THAT THE AIM OF THE CONVERSATION WAS TO ALIGN THE “DEMANDS AND NEEDS” OF UKRAINE AND RUSSIA, ADDING THAT THE CEASEFIRE EFFORTS WERE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.
Zelenskyy had asked Trump for more air defence support to protect his country against Russian attacks, and the US president said he would help find the necessary military equipment in Europe, the White House said.
Trump also briefed Zelenskyy on his Tuesday phone call with Vladimir Putin, in which he rejected a 30-day ceasefire but agreed to halt attacks on energy infrastructure.
Although on Wednesday, when the narrowly defined pause seemed questionable, the two sides conducted a prisoner exchange, releasing 175 soldiers, brokered by the United Arab Emirates. Moscow said it released an additional 22 wounded Ukrainians as a gesture of goodwill.
Zelenskyy confirmed Kyiv’s readiness to stop strikes on Russian infrastructure and to agree to an unconditional ceasefire on the front line, as previously proposed by the US.
“One of the first steps towards a complete end to the war could be the cessation of strikes on energy and other civilian infrastructure… we are ready to implement it,” he said on social media. But “as long as we don’t come to an agreement (with Russia), as long as there is no relevant document on even a partial ceasefire, I think everything will fly”, Zelenskyy said, referring to drones and missiles.
Zelenskyy said that Russia’s strikes, only an hour after the talk between Putin and Trump, showed that Russia was not ready for peace. He said the US should monitor any ceasefire, adding that a partial ceasefire could be reached quickly.
The Kremlin said it had called off planned attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, including the downing of seven of its drones heading to Ukraine. It accused Kyiv of failing to call off its attacks, which it described as an attempt to sabotage the agreement.
The Ukrainian President told reporters in a video call that Trump understands that Kyiv will not recognise the occupied territories as Russian land.
TRUMP SUGGESTED TO ZELENSKYY THAT THE US COULD HELP MANAGE UKRAINE’S NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS AND POSSIBLY BECOME THEIR OWNER, A STATEMENT FROM THE US ADMINISTRATION SAID.
If the US owned these “power plants, that would be the best way to protect this infrastructure and support Ukraine’s energy infrastructure,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Zelenskyy said that the issue of power plants had been discussed, but only the Zaporizhzhia plant was mentioned.
Some European allies remained cautious. Some European leaders said that Putin’s rejection of Trump’s proposed full ceasefire was proof that Moscow was not seeking peace. The offer to temporarily stop attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities “means nothing” and Trump will have to make more concessions, the German defence minister said.
“Putin is playing a game here and I am sure the US president will not be able to sit back and watch any longer,” Boris Pistorius told German broadcaster ZDF.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she would present a proposal to European leaders in Brussels on Thursday to provide Ukraine with two million high-calibre artillery rounds, according to a letter seen by Reuters.
Zelenskyy also said Ukraine had received new deliveries of several F-16 fighter jets, but he declined to say exactly how many had been delivered and when.