Trump Offers Again to Help End Ukraine War in Fourth Call With Putin This Year

With a key NATO summit just days away in Ankara, Turkey, Donald Trump is rushing to position himself as the ultimate peace broker for the war in Ukraine.

In a very calculated move, timed to come during the 250th Independence Day of the United States, Trump held back-to-back phone calls with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The diplomatic dance is moving quickly, but public summaries emerging from Washington, Moscow and Kyiv offer radically different views of how this conflict might actually end.

 The 90-Minute Phone Call With Putin

The Kremlin was quick to describe the hour-and-a-half phone call between Trump and Putin as “businesslike and highly constructive". Trump reiterated his willingness to facilitate a swift end to the fighting, said Yuri Ushakov, an adviser on foreign affairs to the Kremlin.

But Putin used much of the call to ratchet up Russia’s existing advantages:

The Battlefield Status: Putin told Trump about the ground offensive in eastern Ukraine, citing the contested city of Kostyantynivka as evidence of steady Russian progress. The Battlefield Status: Putin told Trump about the ground offensive in eastern Ukraine, citing the contested city of Kostyantynivka as evidence of steady Russian progress.
Blame Europe. The Russian leader pointedly blamed Ukraine's European allies for trying to escalate and prolong the conflict, calling them the "party of war". Any real peace deal must meet Russia's fundamental territorial demands in full, he insisted.

. Zelenskyy’s Parallel Effort Zelenskyy’s Parallel Effort

At almost the same time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had his own call with Trump. Despite intense pressure, Zelenskyy came out of the talk sounding distinctly upbeat.

In a Telegram message, Zelenskyy said the conversation had been “very good” and that “there is a real prospect to end this war, and American resolve will be of crucial meaning.” Crucially, Zelenskyy said he and Trump have already agreed to cut out the intermediaries and continue their high-stakes negotiation face-to-face when they both arrive at the NATO summit in Turkey this week.

The Envoys Waiting

Trump has yet to issue a detailed public statement about either call, but the concrete mechanics of his peace plan are already taking shape behind the scenes.

The Kremlin said Trump’s key negotiating team, led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, is actively steering the diplomatic channel. The two envoys are reported to have suggested they are fully ready to make another official trip direct to Moscow as soon as the first discussions at the NATO summit are completed.

Reality check: Diplomatic optimism abounds, but the situation on the ground is incredibly messy. As Putin was telling Trump that Russian forces had taken the strategic stronghold of Kostyantynivka in order to secure the Donetsk region, Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian General Staff were vehemently denying the claim, publicly describing the announcement as “just another Russian lie".