President Trump on Monday said that Russia and Ukraine will immediately begin negotiations on a ceasefire, following phone calls with the leaders of each country. He also noted the Vatican has offered to host the talks.
The White House said Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for about two hours, after speaking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier in the day.
Trump has been pushing for a 30-day ceasefire in the war, and the White House said before Monday’s calls that he was frustrated with both sides.
The president called for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine before entering office, and more than two months of direct diplomacy has failed to get Putin to agree to even basic terms.
The announcement of direct negotiations comes after Putin last week skipped appearing at direct talks in Turkey that he proposed.
On Monday, Trump described the tone and spirit of his conversation with Putin as “excellent.”
“If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later,” he wrote in a post on his social media site, Truth Social.
Trump said he agreed with Putin that “largescale TRADE” can happen between Russia and the U.S. “when this catastrophic ‘bloodbath’ is ove
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