Trump Shares Update After Phone Call with Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to "immediately" initiate discussions regarding the ongoing conflict in Ukraine following a "lengthy" conversation with former U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday.
"We agreed to work together, very closely, including visiting each other’s Nations," Trump shared on Truth Social. "We have also agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately, and we will begin by calling President Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, to inform him of the conversation, something which I will be doing right now. I have asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of the CIA John Ratcliffe, National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, and Ambassador and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, to lead the negotiations which, I feel strongly, will be successful."
The war between Russia and Ukraine has been ongoing since February 2022, following Russia’s initial invasion.
"We both reflected on the Great History of our Nations, and the fact that we fought so successfully together in World War II, remembering, that Russia lost tens of millions of people, and we, likewise, lost so many!" Trump noted in his Truth Social post, describing his discussion with Putin.
"We each talked about the strengths of our respective Nations, and the great benefit that we will someday have in working together. But first, as we both agreed, we want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the War with Russia/Ukraine. President Putin even used my very strong Campaign motto of, 'COMMON SENSE.'"
Back in January, Putin commended Trump and expressed confidence that he would "restore order" in Europe amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
"Trump, with his character and stubbornness, will restore order there quickly. And all of them – you will see – it will happen swiftly. Soon they will all sit at the feet of their master and gently wag their tails," Putin remarked, as translated by The Daily Wrap.
The Russian leader further suggested that Trump’s candidacy faced widespread opposition across Europe and even implied that certain nations may have interfered in the U.S. election because "mentally, the then-president Joe Biden suited them more."
Putin also stated that "Trump has different ideas about what is good and what is bad – also in matters of gender policy and other issues. And they apparently do not like that," according to the outlet.
Meanwhile, Trump recently hinted that a resolution to the war involving the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine could be within reach.
"We will be speaking, and I think we’ll perhaps do something that’ll be significant," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, according to ABC News. "We want to end that war. That war would have not started if I was president."
Trump did not specify whether he or anyone in his team had directly contacted Putin or Kremlin officials. When asked whether he personally spoke with Putin, Trump responded evasively, saying, "I don’t want to say that."
Since taking office, Trump has criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for failing to negotiate a deal with Putin to prevent the war.
In a separate interview with Russian state media, Putin characterized Trump as a "clever and pragmatic man" who prioritizes U.S. interests above all else.
"We always had a business-like, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current U.S. president," Putin remarked. "I couldn’t disagree with him that if he had been president — if they hadn’t stolen victory from him in 2020, the crisis that emerged in Ukraine in 2022 could have been avoided."
Throughout his campaign, Trump has repeatedly criticized the Biden administration for allocating tens of billions of dollars to Ukraine’s war effort instead of pursuing peace negotiations. However, Zelensky recently addressed Trump’s claims, disputing the stated figure of "$200 billion" in aid to Ukraine.
"When it is said that Ukraine received $200 billion to support the army during the war – that’s not true. I don’t know where all that money went. Perhaps it’s true on paper with hundreds of different programs – I won’t argue, and we’re immensely grateful for everything. But in reality, we received about $76 billion. It’s significant aid, but it’s not $200 billion," he explained.
Since 2022, Congress has allocated approximately $175 billion for Ukraine, but a significant portion has reportedly been spent on American industries and other U.S. government activities linked to the war, according to RT.com.
The Kiel Institute in Germany estimated that by October 2024, the U.S. had assigned roughly $92 billion in military and financial support to Ukraine, while the UK and EU nations allocated around $131 billion.
Zelensky also noted that much of the funding was in military aid rather than direct financial support.
"There are also many other humanitarian programs I’m uninformed about, except for knowing of their existence. Perhaps the U.S. president’s administration will audit these programs and find additional billions, but I don’t know where those funds went," he said.