- President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about Ukraine, the Middle East, energy, artificial intelligence and other topics Wednesday.
- Trump also talked with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
- Trump said negotiations meant to end the war in Ukraine will begin immediately.
- Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth spoke to a group of Ukraine's allies about the Trump administration's approach to ending the war.
President Donald Trump held a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday and following the call Trump said negotiations to end the war with Ukraine will begin immediately.
“We agreed to work together, very closely, including visiting each other’s Nations. We have also agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately, and we will begin by calling President Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, to inform him of the conversation,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump also held a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Wednesday, Ukrainian presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn said, characterizing it as a “good conversation,” according to reports.
According to CNN, the call was the known first conversation between Trump and Putin since Trump’s inauguration in January. This call happened just one day after Russia released an American prisoner, Marc Fogel, who was being held in the country.
Fogel was released in exchange for the U.S. release of a Russian citizen, Alexander Vinnik. Trump said the prisoner exchange creates hope to renew efforts to end the war. Later this month, the conflict in Ukraine will reach three years.
On Truth Social Wednesday morning, Trump shared some of what he and Putin spoke about. “I just had a lengthy and highly productive phone call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. We discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, Energy, Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Dollar, and various other subjects.”
The president said he has asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of the CIA John Ratcliffe, national security adviser Michael Waltz, and Ambassador and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, to lead the negotiations in an effort to end the war, per Truth Social.
According to Reuters, the Kremlin reported that Trump and Putin spoke for around 90 minutes and that the two agreed to meet.
Before Trump took office, President Joe Biden hadn’t spoken with the Russian president in nearly three years. Barack Obama was the last U.S. president to visit Russia when he attended a G20 summit in 2013, per CNN.
Trump has said for a long time that he would end the war in Ukraine and made it a part of his 2024 campaign promise, per Reuters. Before now he hadn’t said how he would accomplish this goal.
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spoke at a meeting of Ukraine’s allies at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Hegseth delivered a blunt message on the Trump administration’s new approach to the war, per reports.
“We want, like you, a sovereign and prosperous Ukraine. But we must start by recognising that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective,” Hegseth said, according to Reuters.