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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, and his Russian counterpart, Vladímir Putin, held a one-and-a-half-hour telephone conversation on Tuesday in which they discussed possible conditions for achieving peace in Ukraine.
According to reports from NBC News, the communication between the two leaders occurred in a positive tone and was described as "historic" by Kirill A. Dmitriev, Putin's special envoy for investment and economic cooperation.
This new contact between Washington and Moscow comes in the context of a thaw in bilateral relations and follows Kiev's acceptance of a temporary ceasefire a week ago.
The Kremlin has stated that a fundamental requirement for a truce is the complete halt of arms shipments to Ukraine, a demand that had already been previously mentioned by Putin. According to the EFE agency, Putin ordered a cessation of attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure for 30 days.
In an official statement, the White House emphasized that "this conflict should never have started and should have ended long ago with sincere and good faith peace efforts."
According to the text, "the leaders agreed that the path to peace would begin with a ceasefire in the energy and infrastructure sectors, as well as technical negotiations on the implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, followed by a total ceasefire and lasting peace."
Close sources cited by Bloomberg have revealed that the White House is considering the possibility of recognizing Russian sovereignty over Crimea, annexed in 2014, as part of a broader agreement for the cessation of hostilities.
However, this point stands in direct conflict with the stance of the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, who has reiterated that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of his country are non-negotiable.
From Air Force One, Trump indicated this Monday that the dialogue with Putin included discussions on territorial issues and the control of strategic infrastructures, referring to the Zaporozhye nuclear plant, the largest in Europe, which has been occupied by Russian forces since the beginning of the invasion.
The U.S. president emphasized that several elements of a possible agreement had already been agreed upon, although he acknowledged that there was still a long way to go.
The White House statement also highlighted that "the leaders spoke extensively about the Middle East as a region with potential for cooperation in preventing future conflicts."
It was also addressed "the need to curb the proliferation of strategic weapons," and it was noted that both leaders "share the view that Iran should never be in a position to destroy Israel."
Meanwhile, Zelensky has criticized Russia's stance, pointing out that it is Putin who is delaying negotiations. “Every day in times of war is a matter of human lives,” he expressed on his X account. The Ukrainian leader has called for greater international support to pressure Moscow and expedite the end of the war.
In parallel, the United States announced its withdrawal from the International Center for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine (ICPA), an organization established to investigate and gather evidence regarding the Russian invasion in anticipation of future international trials.
This decision has been interpreted as a new gesture by Trump to draw closer to Putin and facilitate the realization of a peace agreement.
Finally, the White House emphasized that "the two leaders agreed that a future with an improved bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia holds significant benefits, including large-scale economic agreements and greater geopolitical stability once peace is achieved."
The latest conversation between the two leaders took place on February 12, and since then the Trump administration's stance has shown a substantial shift, with increasing pressure on Kiev and a gradual rapprochement to Moscow.
With negotiations underway and multiple points still to be defined, the outcome of this process could mark a turning point in the war that has ravaged Ukraine for over three years.
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