WASHINGTON 鈥 U.S. President Donald Trump will speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday in a possible pivot point in efforts to end the war in Ukraine and an opportunity for Trump to continue reorienting American foreign policy.
Trump disclosed the upcoming conversation to reporters while flying from Florida to Washington on Air Force One on Sunday evening, while the Kremlin confirmed Putin's participation Monday morning.
"We will see if we have something to announce maybe by Tuesday. I will be speaking to President Putin on Tuesday," Trump said. "A lot of work's been done over the weekend. We want to see if we can bring that war to an end."
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the plans for the two leaders to speak on Tuesday, but declined to give details, saying "we never get ahead of events" and "the content of conversations between two presidents are not subject to any prior discussion."
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Russian President Vladimir Putin enters a hall Monday prior to his meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia.
European allies are wary of Trump's affinity for Putin and his hard-line stance toward Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who faced sharp criticism when he visited the Oval Office a little more than two weeks ago.
Though Russia failed in its initial goal to topple Ukraine with its invasion three years ago, it still controls large swaths of the country.
Trump said land and power plants will be part of the conversation around bringing the war to a close.
He described the process as "dividing up certain assets."
U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said during an interview with India鈥檚 NDTV that Trump and Putin 鈥渁re very good friends鈥 and are focused on ways to strengthen the bonds between the U.S. and Russia.
Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff visited Moscow last week to advance negotiations.
Russia illegally annexed four Ukrainian regions after launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 鈥 the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the east and the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in the southeast of the country 鈥 but doesn't fully control any of the four. Last year, Putin listed Kyiv's withdrawal of troops from all four regions as one of the demands for peace.
Ukrainian soldiers fire a 120mm mortar towards Russian army positions Sunday near Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, Ukraine.
In the occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region, Moscow controls the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant 鈥 the largest in Europe. The plant has repeatedly been caught in the crossfire since the invasion. The International Atomic Energy Agency, a U.N. body, frequently expresses alarm about the plant amid fears of a potential nuclear catastrophe.
The Kremlin also annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
When Putin launched its full-scale invasion Feb. 24, 2022, he demanded Ukraine renounce joining NATO, sharply cut its army, and protect Russian language and culture to keep the country in Moscow鈥檚 orbit.
Russian officials also said any peace deal should involve releasing Russian assets that were frozen in the West and lifting other U.S. and European Union sanctions. The Trump administration proposed putting potential sanctions relief on the table.
Along with that, Putin repeatedly emphasized the need to 鈥渞emove the root causes of the crisis鈥 鈥 a reference to the Kremlin鈥檚 demand to roll back a NATO military buildup near Russian borders that it describes as a major threat to its security.
Facing setbacks along the 620-mile front, Ukraine backed away from demanding that its state borders be returned to pre-2014 lines, because it does not have the military force capable of reaching that end. Ukraine wants a peace deal cemented with security guarantees from international allies that will ensure that Russia is never able to invade again.
President Donald Trump talks to reporters Monday at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington.
In lieu of NATO membership 鈥 a long-sought desire by Kyiv that appears to be nearly impossible without U.S. backing 鈥 what those guarantees might look like is taking shape in parallel talks led by France and Britain. A 鈥渃oalition of the willing鈥 envisions European boots on the ground and a strong military response if Russia were to launch a new offensive.
Zelenskyy insists the Ukrainian army be strengthened to withstand future Russian offensives, a costly endeavor that will require quick and consistent support from international allies. A stockpile of weapons, capable of doing serious damage to Russian assets, is another demand.
Ukraine has key demands from Russia as well. Kyiv refuses to cede more territory to Moscow, including those in partially occupied regions. Also, Ukraine is seeking the return of children illegally deported to Russia and thousands of civilians detained in Russian prisons.
