US President says Russia and Ukraine to start immediate talks on ceasefire: media report
US President Donald Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday and said Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a ceasefire, but the Kremlin said reaching an agreement would take time and Trump indicated he was not ready to join Europe with fresh sanctions to pressure Moscow, Reuters reported on Monday.
In a social media post, Trump said he relayed the plan to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as well as the leaders of the EU, France, Italy, Germany and Finland in a group call following his session with the Russian leader, Reuters said.
The conversation between Putin and his American counterpart lasted more than two hours and was both substantive and candid, the Russian leader said, according to TASS.
Putin thanked Trump for supporting the resumption of direct talks between Moscow and Kiev and announced his readiness to work with Ukraine on a memorandum on a future peace treaty, TASS said.
The over two-hour-long conversation "was very productive and quite candid, and, in my view, highly useful," Putin was quoted as saying in TASS report. He further noted that the talk was "extremely constructive and I highly appreciate it," according to the Russian media report.
European leaders and Ukraine have demanded Russia agree to a ceasefire immediately, and Trump has focused on getting Putin to commit to a 30-day truce. Putin has resisted this, insisting that conditions be met first, Reuters said.
Reuters also noted that Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Trump and Putin did not discuss a timeline for a ceasefire but did discuss trading nine Russians for nine Americans in a prisoner swap. He said the US leader called prospects for ties between Moscow and Washington "impressive," according to Reuters.
According to the Xinhua News Agency, Zelensky spoke with Trump twice on Monday. First, the two leaders had a one-on-one call ahead of Trump's phone conversation with Putin. Later, Zelensky and Trump spoke together with several European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Zelensky said Monday that Ukraine is considering the possibility of holding a high-level meeting with Russia, the US, and European countries, Xinhua reported, citing the Ukrinform news agency.
Speaking at a media briefing following his phone talks with Trump, Zelensky suggested that such a meeting could take place in Türkiye, the Vatican or Switzerland, Xinhua noted.
He noted that Ukraine is open to signing a bilateral memorandum with Russia that would include a ceasefire agreement, according to Xinhua.
At the same time, Zelensky emphasized that during any potential talks with Russia, Kiev would not accept conditions requiring the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from territories under Ukrainian control, Xinhua said.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office Monday afternoon, Trump said he had asked Putin to meet with him, but did not say whether Putin had agreed, NBC News said.
Trump said little about his conversation with Zelensky, with whom he spoke first, other than to say that he had informed Zelensky and the leaders of other NATO countries of the negotiations, according to NBC News.
The Washington Post said that Trump praised the "tone and spirit" of the call on Monday and held out the possibility of "largescale TRADE" with Moscow after the fighting.
But Trump appeared to accept Putin's demand to postpone a ceasefire until after negotiations, and there was little to indicate Russia had abandoned demands that Ukraine finds unacceptable, including that Kiev hand over even more territory as part of a settlement, the Washington Post said.
Ukraine and Russia will continue direct talks that began last week, Trump was quoted as saying in the US media report. But after a massive weekend barrage of Russian drones against Ukraine, it didn't appear that a breakthrough was imminent, according to the Washington Post.
In a social media post, Trump said he relayed the plan to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as well as the leaders of the EU, France, Italy, Germany and Finland in a group call following his session with the Russian leader, Reuters said.
The conversation between Putin and his American counterpart lasted more than two hours and was both substantive and candid, the Russian leader said, according to TASS.
Putin thanked Trump for supporting the resumption of direct talks between Moscow and Kiev and announced his readiness to work with Ukraine on a memorandum on a future peace treaty, TASS said.
The over two-hour-long conversation "was very productive and quite candid, and, in my view, highly useful," Putin was quoted as saying in TASS report. He further noted that the talk was "extremely constructive and I highly appreciate it," according to the Russian media report.
European leaders and Ukraine have demanded Russia agree to a ceasefire immediately, and Trump has focused on getting Putin to commit to a 30-day truce. Putin has resisted this, insisting that conditions be met first, Reuters said.
Reuters also noted that Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Trump and Putin did not discuss a timeline for a ceasefire but did discuss trading nine Russians for nine Americans in a prisoner swap. He said the US leader called prospects for ties between Moscow and Washington "impressive," according to Reuters.
According to the Xinhua News Agency, Zelensky spoke with Trump twice on Monday. First, the two leaders had a one-on-one call ahead of Trump's phone conversation with Putin. Later, Zelensky and Trump spoke together with several European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Zelensky said Monday that Ukraine is considering the possibility of holding a high-level meeting with Russia, the US, and European countries, Xinhua reported, citing the Ukrinform news agency.
Speaking at a media briefing following his phone talks with Trump, Zelensky suggested that such a meeting could take place in Türkiye, the Vatican or Switzerland, Xinhua noted.
He noted that Ukraine is open to signing a bilateral memorandum with Russia that would include a ceasefire agreement, according to Xinhua.
At the same time, Zelensky emphasized that during any potential talks with Russia, Kiev would not accept conditions requiring the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from territories under Ukrainian control, Xinhua said.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office Monday afternoon, Trump said he had asked Putin to meet with him, but did not say whether Putin had agreed, NBC News said.
Trump said little about his conversation with Zelensky, with whom he spoke first, other than to say that he had informed Zelensky and the leaders of other NATO countries of the negotiations, according to NBC News.
The Washington Post said that Trump praised the "tone and spirit" of the call on Monday and held out the possibility of "largescale TRADE" with Moscow after the fighting.
But Trump appeared to accept Putin's demand to postpone a ceasefire until after negotiations, and there was little to indicate Russia had abandoned demands that Ukraine finds unacceptable, including that Kiev hand over even more territory as part of a settlement, the Washington Post said.
Ukraine and Russia will continue direct talks that began last week, Trump was quoted as saying in the US media report. But after a massive weekend barrage of Russian drones against Ukraine, it didn't appear that a breakthrough was imminent, according to the Washington Post.
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