UNITED States (US) President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky have agreed to collaborate and end the latter’s war with Russia.
In their first conversation since an Oval Office shouting match on February 28, Trump and Zelensky spoke on Wednesday in what the White House called a “fantastic one-hour phone call.”
Zelensky expressed gratitude for US support, and both leaders agreed that their technical teams would meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days.
The ICIR reported that Trump announced plans to discuss ending the war in Ukraine with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week Tuesday.
According to the White House, Zelensky requested additional air defence support from Trump to safeguard Ukraine against Russian attacks, and the US president pledged to help secure the necessary military equipment in Europe.
Trump briefed Zelenskiy about his phone call with Putin on Tuesday, in which Putin rejected his proposal for a full 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine was willing to accept, but agreed to halt attacks on energy infrastructure.
Reacting, Zelensky described his conversation with Trump as “positive, very substantive, and frank,” stating that he reaffirmed Kyiv’s willingness to stop strikes on Russian infrastructure and accept an unconditional frontline ceasefire, as previously proposed by the US.
“One of the first steps toward fully ending the war could be ending strikes on energy and other civilian infrastructure. I supported this step, and Ukraine confirmed that we are ready to implement it,” he said on social media.
Later, in a video call with reporters, Zelensky said Trump understood that Kyiv would not recognise the occupied territory as Russian’s. He noted that Russian strikes, carried out after Trump’s call with Putin, demonstrated that Moscow was not ready for peace.
He also emphasised that the US should oversee any ceasefire and suggested that a halt to infrastructure attacks could be swiftly implemented.
However, the US administration in a statement, said Trump suggested to Zelenskiy that the US could assist in operating—and potentially owning—Ukraine’s nuclear power plants.
Recall that Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, located in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, has remained shut since Russian forces occupied it in 2022.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.