President Donald Trump plans to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone on Monday morning, saying calls will continue with Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky and his NATO allies to mediate a ceasefire in the Ukrainian war.
“I will be on the phone and speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin at 10am on Monday,” Trump wrote in a social media post on May 17th.
Trump added that he will speak to Zelensky and various NATO allies to build support to end what he calls “a war that would never have happened.”
“Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will occur and this very violent war will end,” Trump wrote. “God blesses us all!”
Trump’s remarks came shortly after the first direct peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev, held in Istanbul on May 16th and failed to bring about a ceasefire. The nearly two-hour discussions only came from an agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each. This is the biggest exchange like that since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
Putin had proposed negotiations “no prerequisites” but rejected Zelensky’s request for a face-to-face meeting. In response, Zelensky dispatched a lower-level delegation led by Defence Minister Rasm Umerov to meet with a Russian team led by Putin’s aide Vladimir Medinsky.
Both sides confirmed the prisoner exchange agreement, but few additional details were provided. Kyrylo Budanov, director of Ukraine’s military intelligence reporting, said the swap could take place as early as next week.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on further terms discussed at the talks, telling Moscow reporters on Saturday that the negotiations will “ensure that they are as productive as they are being held behind closed doors.”
Peskov added that Russia plans to present Ukraine with a list of ceasefire conditions, but did not specify a timeline. He also did not rule out future meetings for Putin and Zelensky, but said that it would depend on the success of prisoner exchanges and further advances in consultations.
In another development, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke by phone on May 17 to discuss the outcome of the Istanbul Conference and the broader outline of the ceasefire. Rubio said in a statement on social media that he conveyed Trump’s message – “Death and destruction must cease” – urged Russia to end the hostility.
“The United States has presented a strong peace plan. We welcome the prisoner-exchange agreement reached in Istanbul,” Rubio wrote. “Don’t miss this great opportunity. It’s time to end this war.”
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that “the US “positive role” in Ukraine’s return to the negotiation table has acknowledged a “positive role” and confirmed Moscow’s willingness to continue diplomatic involvement, according to Russian national media. “The conversation also touched on several other international and regional issues. The side exchanged opinions on the development of Russia-US relations,” he added.
Zelenskyy, on his part, expressed dissatisfaction with the stagnant consultations and repeated calls for a complete, unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine.
“Ukraine has been providing this for a long time. It’s a complete and unconditional ceasefire to save lives. Russia has no choice but to continue killing,” Zelensky said in a social media post on Saturday. He accused Russian troops of deliberately targeting them, citing a drone strike on a bus that evacuated residents from the Smee area, which killed nine people. “The deceased were all civilians,” he said. “This was a deliberate murder of a civilian.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense said its forces attacked military facilities at Smee but did not mention civilian casualties.
Zelenskyy called for severe sanctions against Moscow if he refused to pursue serious peace efforts. “Without tougher sanctions or stronger pressure, Russia will not seek real diplomacy,” he wrote on social media.
Trump told Fox News in an interview documented during his recent trip to Abu Dhabi, saying he believes the negotiated peace is within reach.
“I think we’ll do a deal,” he said. “We have to get together, so I think we’ll probably schedule it.”
