Washington (AP) — According to the White House, President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed during a lengthy phone call on Tuesday to seek a limited ceasefire against energy and infrastructure targets in the Russia-Ukraine war.
The White House described it as the first step in a “movement to peace” that it hopes will eventually include a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea and a complete and permanent end to the fighting.
“Both leaders agreed that this conflict must end with a lasting peace,” the White House said in a statement. “The blood and treasure that both Ukraine and Russia have been spending in this war would be better spent on the needs of their people.”
The White House also stated that negotiations would “begin immediately” on those steps. It was unclear whether Ukraine supported the phased ceasefire plan.
During a meeting with the US delegation in Saudi Arabia this month, Ukrainian officials proposed a limited ceasefire covering the Black Sea, long-range missile strikes, and the release of prisoners.
Putin also informed Trump that Russia and Ukraine are scheduled to exchange 175 prisoners of war on Wednesday, and Russia will also hand over 23 severely wounded soldiers to Ukraine, according to the Kremlin.
Putin also urged Trump to end foreign military and intelligence assistance to Ukraine as the US seeks to put an end to Russia’s invasion of the country, according to the Kremlin.
The move comes as the White House pushes Russia to accept its 30-day cease-fire proposal aimed at ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Last week, Ukrainian officials agreed to the 30-day ceasefire proposal during talks in Saudi Arabia led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. As Russian forces continue to pound Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remains sceptical that Putin is ready for peace.
The engagement is just the latest development in dramatically shifting US-Russia relations, as Trump prioritised quickly ending the conflict, even if it meant straining ties with long-time American allies who want Putin to pay for the invasion.
In advance of the Trump-Putin call, White House special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow last week to discuss the proposal. During talks in Saudi Arabia, Rubio persuaded senior Ukrainian officials to support the cease-fire framework.
Last week, Putin said he agreed in principle with the US proposal, but emphasised that Russia would seek guarantees that Ukraine would not use a cease-fire to rearm and continue mobilising.
To keep Ukraine in Moscow’s orbit, the Russian president has also demanded that the country renounce its membership in NATO, drastically reduce its army, and protect Russian language and culture.
The US president stated that Washington and Moscow have already begun discussing “dividing up certain assets” between Ukraine and Russia as part of an agreement to end the conflict.
Trump, who promised to end the war quickly during his campaign, has at times boasted about his relationship with Putin and blamed Ukraine for Russia’s unprovoked invasion, all while accusing Zelenskyy of unnecessarily prolonging Europe’s largest land war since World War II.
Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesperson, told reporters on Tuesday that Trump and Putin will discuss the Ukraine conflict, but that there are also a “large number of questions” about normalising US-Russia relations.
Trump has stated that control over land and power plants will be discussed, coinciding with the 11th anniversary of Russia annexing Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. Russia’s bold land grab paved the way for an invasion of its neighbour in 2022.
Witkoff claimed that US and Russian officials had discussed the fate of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, in southern Ukraine.
The plant has been caught in the crossfire since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, seizing the facility shortly after. The United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly expressed concern about it, fuelling fears of a nuclear disaster.
The plant is a valuable asset, generating nearly a quarter of Ukraine’s electricity in the year preceding the conflict.
Following a disastrous February 28 White House meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump temporarily suspended some military intelligence sharing and aid to Ukraine. It was restored after the Ukrainians last week approved the Trump administration’s 30-day cease-fire proposal.
Zelenskyy stated in his nightly video address on Monday that he continues to doubt Putin’s readiness for peace.
“Now, almost a week later, it’s clear to everyone in the world — even to those who refused to acknowledge the truth for the past three years — that it is Putin who continues to drag out this war,” Zelenskyy said on CNN.
In his dealings with Zelenskyy and Putin, Trump has frequently focused on who has the most leverage. Trump has repeatedly stated that Putin has “the cards” while Zelenskyy does not.
Trump, who has long admired Putin, has also stated that he wants to see the relationship between the United States and Russia return to normal.
During his recent contentious meeting with Zelenskyy, the president complained that “Putin went through a hell of a lot with me,” alluding to the federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, in which he defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton.
On Monday, Trump reiterated his belief that Ukraine is in a weak negotiating position. He claimed that Russian forces had “surrounded” Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk region, bolstering an assertion made by Russian officials that Zelenskyy disputes.
In August of last year, Ukraine’s army stunned Russia by attacking across the border and seizing control of an estimated 1,300 square kilometres (500 square miles) of territory. However, Ukraine’s forces are now retreating, and the country has effectively lost a valuable bargaining chip as momentum for a cease-fire with Russia grows.
Zelenskyy has admitted that the Ukrainians are on the back foot, while disputing Russian claims that his troops are encircled in Kursk.
Trump claimed that he has taken unspecified action to prevent Russia from slaughtering Ukrainian troops in Kursk.
“They’re surrounded by Russian soldiers, and I believe if it wasn’t for me they wouldn’t be here any longer,” Mr. Trump said.
