U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed a desire for peace in separate phone calls with him. Trump has now ordered top U.S. officials to begin talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump’s diplomatic push comes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signaled a major shift in U.S. policy, saying Kyiv would have to abandon its goal of joining NATO and reclaiming all occupied territory.
Following an hour-long call with Putin, Trump said the Russian leader was open to a ceasefire "in the not-too-distant future."
“He wants it to end. He doesn’t want to end it and then go back to fighting six months later,” Trump told reporters.
"I think we're on the way to getting peace. I think President Putin wants peace, President Zelensky wants peace, and I want peace," he added.
Trump has appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff to lead U.S. negotiations on ending the war.
After his conversation with Putin, Trump spoke with Zelensky for an hour. The Ukrainian president later described the call as “meaningful”, saying they discussed Ukraine’s defense capabilities, including drones and advanced technologies.
Trump said he and Putin expect to meet soon, most likely in Saudi Arabia, though Putin has also invited Trump to visit Moscow.
Defense Secretary Hegseth earlier stated that restoring Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is unrealistic and that NATO membership for Kyiv is not part of a peace settlement.
"Chasing this illusionary goal will only prolong the war and cause more suffering," Hegseth told NATO allies in Brussels.
Ukraine has long maintained that any peace deal must include:
✔ Russia’s full withdrawal from occupied territory
✔ Binding NATO membership or equivalent security guarantees
However, Moscow insists on Ukraine ceding territory and remaining permanently neutral.
A joint statement from Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain, the U.K., and the European Union stressed that Ukraine’s future must not be decided without its involvement. They also pledged to increase military and economic support to strengthen Kyiv’s position.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent visited Kyiv on Wednesday—the first Trump cabinet official to do so—and floated the idea of a U.S.-Ukraine minerals investment deal as a post-war economic shield.
Trump’s peace push follows a U.S.-Russia prisoner swap completed on Tuesday, in which:
✔ Russia freed American teacher Marc Fogel, who had been serving a 14-year sentence
✔ The U.S. released a Russian cybercriminal, as part of a negotiated exchange
The Kremlin called the swap a step toward rebuilding trust between Washington and Moscow.
Trump also confirmed that Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Rubio will meet Ukrainian officials on Friday in Munich at the annual security conference, signaling further diplomatic moves.
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