The Kremlin said in a statement that President Vladimir F. Putin from Russia first agreed on Tuesday to a limited ceasefire that would stop strikes on energy infrastructure, as long as Ukraine does the same.
But in a two and a half hours phone call with President Trump, the Russian leader now refused to agree to a 30 -day stop in the fighting proposed by US officials and Ukrainian employees, which means that the attacks on Ukrainian civilians, cities and ports will continue to compete with the two sides on the region and the upper hand.
However, if the strikes on energy infrastructure stopped by the two sides already, this will constitute the first agreed suspension of the two parties in a three -year war, which the White House described as a first step towards a broader peace. But separately, some administration officials acknowledged that Mr. Putin seemed to be stopped, and agreed enough to show that he was participating in peace talks, while pressing his interest in the battlefield.
The ceasefire on energy targets will not only benefit Ukraine, which has been struggled for years with the repeated attacks of Russia on the power network. This will also be a relief to the Kremlin: Ukraine has made widespread strikes on oil and gas facilities in the depth of Hartland, which led to Moscow’s revenues at risk in state revenues.
President Voludmir Zelinski of Ukraine said he was waiting for a phone call from Mr. Trump to find out the details of his discussion with Mr. Putin, but he indicated that he was open to a truce to strikes targeting energy infrastructure.
“Russia and Ukraine, through the mediation of the United States, can agree to not attack the energy infrastructure,” a Lakrani public broadcaster told the Ukrainian public on Tuesday night. “Our team will support this. But it cannot be that Russia is attacking our energy sector and remains silent. We will respond.”
In a later statement, he said that Mr. Putin “actually rejected the proposal to a full ceasefire,” and accused Russia of continuous attacks, including a drone strike in a hospital in the northeastern city of Sumi. His demand cannot be confirmed independently.
The American and Russian accounts of the call of the Gulf that remains. The Kremlin said that Mr. Putin insisted that a long -term peace depends on a complete stop for military aid and foreign intelligence in Kiev.
In essence, Mr. Putin was calling for the end of military support to Ukraine, which was provided by the United States and its allies for three years. Mr. Trump and Vice President JD VANCE were severely criticized by the United States in the war, but the White House did not refer to this part of the discussion in its mysterious novel of the conversation. Europe has adhered to more assistance.
The White House did not describe any discussions about what the Russia region might keep after the seizure of about 20 percent of Ukraine, starting with the inclusion of illegal Crimea in 2014.
The result of the invitation seemed no less than what Mr. Trump was hoping in his communication with Moscow, after several days of optimistic statements from the White House, which was at hand. Despite Mr. Trump’s optimism, which included an exclamation mark full of social media, there was no history of a meeting between the presidents. There was no statement of the common principles of ending the war.
But there were good faith gestures. Mr. Putin said that Russia would release 23 Ukrainian soldiers with serious injuries and will exchange prisoners with Ukraine later this month, and consists of 175 prisoners from each side.
The negotiations came after a noticeable public breach between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zellinski, who played directly in the hands of Mr. Putin. The Trump administration temporarily suspended military and intelligence aid to Ukraine earlier this month after an explosive confrontation between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zellinski in the Oval Office. Washington has regained the flow of aid after the United States and Ukrainian officials in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and agreed to a comprehensive proposal for 30 days. Then the Trump administration brought the proposal to Moscow.
Mr. Putin, who is keen to avoid disturbing the Kremlin rapid rapprochement with the White House, said the idea was “correct” and that Russia supported it in principle. But he began to develop the known conditions that they are unacceptable to Kiev.
According to Karmlin, the Russian leader repeated those concerns during the invitation on Tuesday. The Kremlin said that Mr. Putin raised the issue of “ensuring effective control” in carrying out the ceasefire via a lengthy front. The Russian leader also said that Ukraine would need to stop filling and reinforcing employees, a case that Ukraine said would not be accepted.
On Sunday night, Mr. Trump told the correspondents that he is expected to focus on a lot of discussion on the lands that will be waived for Russia and the control of nuclear power plants. This seems to indicate that he wants to discuss the fate of the nuclear power plant in Zaborisvia, the largest in Europe, which is now occupied by Russian forces.
However, the Kremlin nor the White House mentioned any discussions about the power plant or the region that Russia might keep.
While Washington and Moscow remained last month to normalize their diplomatic duties, after years of expulsion and closure, and US officials and Russians at moderate levels held talks on the case in late February. However, the White House and the Kremlin did not mention the matter, in their summaries.
In a statement to the White House and a separate position for Mr. Trump on the social truth, Washington said that Mr. Putin agreed to stop strikes on “energy and infrastructure.” But in his statement, the Kremlin said, “The Energy Infrastructure.” It was not clear how the endowment will be carried out on energy strikes, if valid.
The Kremlin said that the two leaders also expressed his support for the broader normalization of relations between the United States and Russia, and discussed potential future economic cooperation, including in the energy sector. Mr. Trump agreed to the idea of ​​Mr. Putin to hold hockey tournaments in their countries, in which American and Russian professional players will compete.
The Trump administration may be designed to discuss the details, including any discussion that the two men may have on the Earth’s privileges that Mr. Zellinski will pressure them to make it as an end to the fighting, designed to keep the maximum flexibility in the negotiating room. But it may also reflect the desire to avoid another open confrontation with Mr. Zellinski.
In recent days, senior Ukrainian officials described three red lines that interfere with negotiations: Kiev will not officially accept Russian sovereignty over the occupied Ukrainian lands, or agree to the neutral situation or agree to reduce the size of its armed forces. The officials also said that they should obtain security guarantees as part of any settlement. France and Britain, from among others, offered to send forces to Ukraine as part of the peacekeeping force or “journey wire”, but the Kremlin rejected the idea. Military officials ask whether such force is possible if the United States does not agree to support the European effort in a crisis.
Speaking to journalists on Saturday, Mr. Zellinski said that Ukraine will not recognize the occupied territories as “under any circumstances,” adding that he understands that “this is exactly what the Russians need, and they will insist on conditions that Ukraine cannot accept.” Last November, Mr. Zelinski acknowledged that all lands could not be won by force, and they may have to stay under Russian control after a settlement.
In his statement, the White House focused on issues outside Ukraine, saying that Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin “spoke widely about the Middle East as a region of potential cooperation” and “the need to stop the spread of strategic weapons.” The remaining nuclear weapons border treaty between the United States and Russia ends in February, and negotiations on an alternative have not started. During his first term, Mr. Trump said he would not enter a new arms control treaty without China’s signing also on the border, although Beijing did not express any attention because it expands its arsenal.
For Mr. Trump, the ceasefire in Ukraine is a first step to a much wider normalization of relations with Russia, which he follows even while most of his allies in NATO follow the strategy of the past three years: sanctions and the containment of Russia, and continuous aid to Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials accused Mr. Putin of playing for time in order to maintain the leverage in the negotiations, and allow Russia to continue bombing Ukrainian cities and towns.
In his statement, the White House said that Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin have agreed to start the “technical negotiations” on the broader ceasefire in the Black Sea, where Russian ships cannot work now, “a complete ceasefire and permanent peace.” She said that these talks will start immediately in the Middle East. “
Mark Santora and Continuing méheut She contributed to the reports from Kyiv.
