Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the US leader Donald Trump spoke by phone on February 12.
Babel was informed about this by the Presidentʼs Office.
The conversation lasted about an hour and has now ended. It is currently unknown what exactly the leaders of the states discussed.
Before the conversation with Zelensky, Trump said that he had spoken with Putin. They discussed Ukraine and agreed to instruct teams to begin negotiations. The American president was going to inform Zelensky "right now" about the dialogue with Putin.
According to Trump, the conversation with Putin was "long and very productive".
"We agreed to work closely together, including mutual visits to our countries," the US president wrote.
He also stressed that he has tasked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, and Ambassador and Special Representative Steve Witkoff to lead the negotiations. Trump is confident that they will be successful.
Zelensky later revealed details of his conversation with Trump. They discussed the possibilities of achieving peace, the willingness of their teams to work together, and technological capabilities, including drones and other modern production.
In addition, the leaders recalled Zelenskyʼs conversation with the head of the US Treasury, who brought a draft agreement on minerals to Ukraine. The dialogue also touched on new agreements on security and economic and resource cooperation.
The US president told the Ukrainian leader what he had discussed with Putin. Donald Trump added that the conversation went "very well" and that Zelensky, "like President Putin, wants to achieve peace".
"We discussed various topics related to the war, but mainly the meeting that will take place on Friday in Munich, where the delegation will be led by [US] Vice President JD Vance and [US] Secretary of State Marco Rubio," Trump wrote on his social network.
Trumpʼs plans for war in Ukraine
During the election campaign, Trump claimed that he could end the war in Ukraine “in one day”. However, after being elected president, his narratives changed. The American newspaper The Wall Street Journal wrote that he instructed special envoy Keith Kellogg to end the war in 100 days.
Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly stressed that the state will defend its integrity and will not cede its territories to Russia. In September 2024, Zelensky met with Donald Trump and presented him with a victory plan. According to the Ukrainian leader, the meeting was very meaningful.
New US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that under Donald Trumpʼs presidency, ending the Russian-Ukrainian war will be the official policy of the United States. He said that he could not give a specific date for the end of the war between Russia and Ukraine, but both sides will have to make some concessions because they will not be able to achieve their maximum goals.
And Trump himself, two days after his inauguration, called on Putin to end the war — otherwise he would impose large taxes and sanctions.
Zelensky said he likes Trumpʼs tactics for ending hostilities. However, he stressed that Trump and Putinʼs talks about a war without Ukraine are dangerous for everyone.
On February 9, Trump said in an interview with the New York Post that he has a specific plan to end the war and wants to make a $500 billion deal with Volodymyr Zelensky for access to rare earth minerals and gas in Ukraine in exchange for security guarantees in a potential peace deal.
This conversation between Putin and Trump today was probably the second. The New York Post reported on the first phone conversation between Trump and Putin on February 9.
The next day, Trump said the United States was making progress in talks to end the war between Russia and Ukraine, but declined to provide details about any contacts with Putin. He said at the time that the United States was in contact with Russia and Ukraine and “talking to both sides”.
On February 11, the American president said that Ukraine had “essentially agreed” to transfer half a trillion dollars in rare earth metals to Washington as payment for American military aid. Before that, Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv was open to partnership on this issue.
On February 12, the US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent brought a draft mineral agreement to Ukraine.
After meeting with Scott Bessent, Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Ukrainian side would make a decision after reviewing the document.
- Bloomberg recently reported that the Trump administration would present a plan to end Russiaʼs war against Ukraine on February 14-16 at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. However, Kellogg denied this.
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