U.S. President Donald Trump held a nearly two-hour call this Tuesday with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in which they agreed that the war in Ukraine “must end with lasting peace,” according to a statement from the White House. Both leaders agreed to immediately begin negotiations on a ceasefire focused on energy infrastructure and other strategic sectors.
The White House reported that Trump and Putin agreed that the first step toward peace would be a ceasefire on energy infrastructure, along with technical discussions on implementing a halt to hostilities in the Black Sea and establishing permanent peace. In response, the Kremlin announced that Putin had accepted a 30-day truce on attacks on energy facilities following his talks with Trump.
“During the conversation, Donald Trump proposed that both sides refrain from attacking energy infrastructure for a period of 30 days,” the Kremlin statement said. “Vladimir Putin responded positively to this initiative and immediately issued orders to the Russian military,” the statement added.
The White House also stated that negotiations on these agreements would begin immediately in the Middle East. According to the official readout of the conversation, both leaders agreed that improving U.S.-Russia bilateral relations would bring enormous benefits, including significant economic deals and greater geopolitical stability.
A Russian source familiar with the call told CNN that the conversation “was very positive.” The call took place as the White House insists it is close to securing a temporary ceasefire to halt the war between Russia and Ukraine. This dialogue represents a key test for Trump, who has largely echoed Putin’s stance on the conflict and has pledged in his election campaign to end the war.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino commented on social media around 11 a.m. (Miami time) that the conversation “was going well.” The call began at 10 a.m. and lasted nearly two hours.
Meanwhile, Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, praised the leadership of both presidents following the dialogue. “Under the leadership of President Putin and President Trump, the world has become a much safer place today! Historic! Epic!” Dmitriev, a close adviser to Putin, wrote on X.
Sources familiar with the negotiations told CNN that a key point of the conversation was determining the concessions Russia might be willing to make, including a potential withdrawal from territories it has occupied over the past three years. Trump hinted at this possibility in remarks to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, mentioning the idea of “dividing certain assets.”
“We will discuss the issue of land. Many areas are very different from what they were before the war, as you know. We will talk about land, we will talk about power plants—that’s a major issue,” Trump stated.
The Kremlin revealed that Putin had extensively prepared for the conversation, instructing his staff to develop key discussion points on Russia’s position. This phone call marked the resumption of direct communication between the White House and the Kremlin after a long period of silence.
Since then, Trump has hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office for a meeting that ended tensely, with Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance reportedly yelling at the Ukrainian delegation and demanding they leave. This led to a temporary U.S. pause in military aid and intelligence-sharing.
Weeks of intense back-and-forth negotiations between senior U.S. officials—led by Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz—and top Ukrainian and Russian officials resulted in the announcement of a U.S.-led ceasefire proposal. After Zelensky agreed to the 30-day proposal last week, Washington made it clear that the final decision lay with Moscow. “Russia holds all the cards,” Trump stated.
Trump and his team have repeatedly emphasized that stopping the fighting is essential before addressing the more complex issues that must be resolved in a long-term peace agreement, such as territorial boundaries and Ukraine’s security arrangements. However, Putin has publicly expressed skepticism about the U.S. proposal, stating last week that Ukraine must accept concrete concessions, such as halting troop mobilization and training, and that other countries must stop supplying weapons to Kyiv during the ceasefire.
