Trump reveals date and agenda for next Putin call

US President Donald Trump announced he will speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin on 18 March to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, according to Reuters and The New York Times.

This diplomatic effort follows recent US-Ukraine talks held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 11 March, which led to Ukraine’s agreement to the temporary truce.

Following those negotiations, the United States committed to immediately restore military assistance and intelligence sharing with Ukraine, which was previously suspended as a pressure tactic to encourage Ukraine to engage in peace negotiations with Russia. 

“I’ll be speaking to President Putin on Tuesday. A lot of work’s been done over the weekend. We want to see if we can end this war. Maybe we can, maybe we can’t, but I think we have a very good chance,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One while returning to Washington from Florida, Reuters reports.

The call aims to secure Putin’s support for a proposed 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine has already accepted.

The plan includes a pause in fighting to facilitate humanitarian efforts such as prisoner exchanges and the return of forcibly transferred children

When questioned about potential concessions in the negotiations, Trump acknowledged discussions are underway regarding resource allocation between the parties.

“I think we’ll be talking about land, it’s a lot of land,” Trump explained. “We’ll be talking about power plants. That’s a big issue. But I think we’ve already discussed a lot of this, both sides — Ukraine and Russia,” according to the New York Times.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy confirmed Kyiv’s readiness but emphasized the ceasefire would only be effective with Russia’s agreement.

Putin indicated Moscow is receptive to proposals for halting hostilities but noted certain issues still require discussion.