Trump signals start of peace talks after phone calls with Putin and Zelensky
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky spoke over the phone with US president Donald Trump on Wednesday, hours after Trump spoke to Russian president Vladimir Putin. The discussion followed an agreement between Trump and Putin to begin negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, described the conversation with Zelensky as productive. "The conversation went very well. He wants to make peace, just like President Putin," he said.
"We talked about a range of topics related to the war. It is time to put an end to this ridiculous war in which massive and completely unnecessary deaths and destruction have been caused. God bless the people of Russia and Ukraine!"
"The conversation went very well. He wants to make peace"
Zelensky also wrote about the discussion on X, saying Trump had spoken about "opportunities to achieve peace". He highlighted Ukraine’s desire for an end to the conflict. "Nobody wants peace more than Ukraine. Together with the United States, we are taking our next steps to stop Russian aggression and to ensure a lasting, reliable peace."
According to the Kremlin, the conversation between Trump and Putin lasted an hour and a half. Putin agreed with Trump's position that they should work together. He also invited the American president to Moscow.
NATO membership
Earlier on Wednesday, US Defence secretary Pete Hegseth outlined Washington’s position on the negotiations, dismissing the possibility of Ukraine reclaiming its pre-2014 borders as an "unrealistic goal".
He also ruled out Ukrainian NATO membership as part of a peace agreement, saying that any security guarantees would need to come from "capable European and non-European troops" rather than a NATO mission.
"To be clear, there will be no deployment of US troops in Ukraine as part of any security guarantee," Hegseth said at a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group. He further stressed that Trump sought a diplomatic resolution: "We will only end this devastating war and achieve lasting peace by combining the strength of our allies with a realistic assessment of the battlefield."
While the US remains committed to a "sovereign and prosperous Ukraine", Hegseth indicated that European nations would need to take on greater responsibility for Ukraine’s future security.
"The United States remains committed to the alliance and continues to support a defence partnership with Europe," he said but added that Washington would not accept an "unbalanced relationship" within NATO.
US president Donald Trump, Ukrainian president Volodomyr Zelensky and Russian president Vladimir Putin © PHOTO JOHN THYS, JIM WATSON, ALEXANDER NEMENOV / AFP
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