Trump Holds ‘Positive’ Call With Putin After Zelensky Meeting

President Donald Trump talked to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, as the United States seeks to finally bring an end to the Ukraine-Russia war.

Trump’s discussion with Putin on Monday was “positive,” according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who did not reveal any details of the phone call. Trump also said he spoke to Putin in a “productive telephone call” just prior to his meeting with Zelensky on Sunday.

During a press conference alongside Zelensky following their meeting, Trump said that he believes a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia is “closer than ever,” adding, “In a few weeks, we will know one way or the other.” Zelensky added that Ukrainian negotiators have agreed to about 90% of Trump’s 20-point peace plan, while Trump said Ukraine agreed to 95% of it. Trump proposed a 28-point peace plan last month, but it was reduced to 20 points during negotiations.

“Our meeting was excellent, we covered — somebody would say 95 percent, I don’t know what percent — but we have made a lot of progress on ending that war,” Trump said on Sunday.

While Trump remains optimistic about the peace negotiations, Putin has shown no signs of slowing down his campaign to take over Ukraine.

Russia continued to pummel Ukraine with missiles and drones over the weekend, just ahead of Trump’s meeting with Zelensky. Kyiv, along with other parts of Ukraine, was targeted with hundreds of missiles and drones on Saturday. At least two people were killed, and 46 others were wounded in the attacks, Reuters reported. Zelensky argued that Russia’s aggression was a direct response by Putin to Ukraine’s negotiations with Trump.

Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships

“Today, Russia demonstrated how it responds to peaceful negotiations between Ukraine and the United States to end Russia’s war against Ukraine,” Zelensky said on Saturday.

Russia also accused Ukraine of targeting a presidential residence in a drone attack that was thwarted by Russian defenses. Zelensky denied the accusation, calling it a “new lie” from Moscow.

Russia has signaled that it does not agree with some of Trump’s peace plan, including how large Ukraine’s military would remain under the conditions, Bloomberg reported. Another major sticking point in the negotiations is Ukraine’s Donbas region, which is largely under Russian control despite continued fighting by Ukrainian troops.

Zelensky, meanwhile, said on Monday that he wants security guarantees from the United States to last up to 50 years if he agrees to the peace deal. Under the current proposal, the United States and Europe would provide security guarantees for 15 years, with the possibility for an extension.

“I would like the guarantee to be much longer,” Zelensky said. “We would like to consider the possibility of 30, 40, 50 years and then it will be a historic decision by Trump.”