US President Donald Trump was due to speak to Russia President Vladimir Putin about peace in Ukraine as the US vice president said there was an impasse over ending the conflict.
Putin sent thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the gravest confrontation between Russia and the United States since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly called for an end to the “bloodbath” of Ukraine, which his administration casts as a proxy war between the US and Russia.
Under pressure from Trump, delegates from the warring countries met last week in Istanbul for the first time since 2022, after Putin proposed direct talks and European countries and Ukraine demanded an immediate ceasefire.
Less than an hour before the 10am EST (midnight AEST) call, US Vice President JD Vance told reporters that the US recognised there was an impasse in ending the war – and that if Russia was not willing to engage then eventually the United States would have to say it was not its war.
“We realise there’s a bit of an impasse here. And I think the president’s going to say to President Putin: ‘Look, are you serious? Are you real about this?'” Vance said as he prepared to depart from Italy.
“I think honestly that President Putin, he doesn’t quite know how to get out of the war,” Vance said, adding that he had just spoken to Trump.
He said it “takes two to tango. I know the president’s willing to do that but if Russia is not willing to do that, then we’re eventually just going to say, this is not our war.”
“We’re going to try to end it but if we can’t end it, we’re eventually going to say: ‘You know what? That was worth a try but we’re not doing anymore.'”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed to reporters Putin and Trump will speak on Monday and called the conversation “important, given the talks that took place in Istanbul” last week between Russian and Ukrainian officials.
Trump, whose administration has made clear that Russia could face additional sanctions if it does not take peace talks seriously, said he would also speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and various members of the NATO military alliance.
Putin, whose forces control a fifth of Ukraine and are advancing, has stood firm on his conditions for ending the war despite public and private pressure from Trump and repeated warnings from European powers.
On Sunday, Russia launched its largest drone attack on Ukraine since the start of the war.
In June 2024, Putin said Ukraine must officially drop its NATO ambitions and withdraw its troops from the entire territory of the four Ukrainian regions Russia claims.
On Sunday, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed Russia’s war against Ukraine with leaders of the United States, Italy, France and Germany, a Downing Street spokesperson said.
“Tomorrow (Monday) President Putin must show he wants peace by accepting the 30-day unconditional ceasefire proposed by President Trump and backed by Ukraine and Europe,” French President Emmanuel Macron said on X after Sunday’s call.
Putin is wary of a ceasefire and says fighting cannot be paused until a number of crucial conditions are worked out or clarified.
with AP
