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The Kremlin announced on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to have a phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
“We are aiming to determine if we can put an end to the conflict,” Trump remarked to reporters aboard Air Force One during his return from Florida to Washington on Sunday evening. “There’s a possibility we can achieve this, and I believe we have a solid chance.”
Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for the Kremlin, affirmed the planned call for Tuesday.
During his remarks, Trump indicated that there had been productive discussions between his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Putin in Moscow.
President Trump is seeking to gain support from Putin regarding a proposed 30-day ceasefire, which Ukraine accepted last week, amid ongoing heavy aerial assaults over the weekend as Russia moves closer to eliminating Ukrainian forces from their long-held positions in the western Russian region of Kursk.
When probed about possible concessions in ceasefire talks, Trump stated, “We’ll be discussing land, we’ll be discussing energy infrastructure… Talks are already underway regarding the division of certain resources.”
While he did not provide further details, this likely pertains to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility in Ukraine, which is currently under Russian control and is the largest nuclear plant in Europe. Both Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of endangering the facility during the ongoing conflict.
Regarding Trump’s comments, the Kremlin refrained from providing any insight into the forthcoming discussions between the two leaders.
Issues of Territory and Security Guarantees
In separate appearances on various United States television shows, Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Trump’s National Security Adviser Mike Waltz highlighted that significant hurdles remain before a ceasefire could be achieved, let alone a comprehensive peace agreement to conclude the war.
On ABC, when asked if the U.S. would entertain a peace agreement that permits Russia to retain control over parts of eastern Ukraine, Waltz responded, “Will we remove every Russian from every inch of Ukrainian territory?” He emphasized that any negotiations must reflect the prevailing realities.
WATCH l Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada tells CBC News country wants ceasefire:
U.S. and Ukraine agreed to a ceasefire deal. Will Russia?
A nine-hour discussion on Tuesday involving American, Ukrainian, and Saudi Arabian officials culminated in Ukraine accepting a U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire. Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada Yuliya Kovaliv stated that the responsibility now lies with Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly asserted that his nation’s sovereignty is non-negotiable, insisting that Russia must relinquish the territory it has occupied. Since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has taken control of the Crimea peninsula and significant portions of four eastern Ukrainian regions.
Russia is demanding “ironclad” assurances in any peace agreement, specifically that NATO countries refrain from allowing Ukraine to join the alliance and that Ukraine maintains a neutral status, according to comments made by a Russian deputy foreign minister on Monday.
In an interview with the Russian publication Izvestia that did not reference the ceasefire proposal, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko stated that any enduring peace treaty concerning Ukraine must align with Moscow’s stipulations.
“We will insist that robust security guarantees are incorporated into this agreement,” Grushko reportedly expressed. “These guarantees should include Ukraine’s neutral status and the commitment of NATO countries not to admit it into the alliance.”
Russia Launches Drone Assaults
Putin has justified the military action in Ukraine by citing NATO’s eastward expansion as a threat to Russian security. He has mandated that Ukraine abandon its NATO aspirations, retain control of all territories currently occupied by Russia, and limit the size of the Ukrainian military. Putin also seeks the easing of Western sanctions and calls for elections in Ukraine, which Kyiv argues is unfeasible while martial law is in effect.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, remarked on Monday that the demands posed by Russia to agree to a ceasefire demonstrate that Moscow is not genuinely seeking peace.
Trump has notably altered U.S. foreign policy by moving closer to Moscow, recently surprising European allies when he disclosed that he had a phone conversation with Putin and was dispatching diplomats to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia, sidelining Ukrainian representatives.
Shortly thereafter, Trump and U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance confronted Zelenskyy during a meeting in the Oval Office that ended prematurely for the Ukrainian leader.
In recent skirmishes on Monday, Ukraine’s air defense units reported downing 90 out of 174 drones launched by Russia during an overnight assault, according to the Ukrainian air force.
The military reported that 70 of the drones were lost, with Ukrainian forces employing electronic warfare to redirect them.
The regions of Odesa, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Sumy, Chernihiv, and Kyiv all experienced impacts from the Russian attacks, as detailed by the military on the Telegram messaging service.
One civilian sustained injuries during these attacks, which resulted in damage to a kindergarten, a private home, a commercial establishment, and a passenger vehicle, according to Odesa Governor Oleh Kiper’s statements on Telegram.
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