The US and Russian leaders have spoken by phone, both sides have confirmed

FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump. © Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump had a phone conversation on Wednesday, both Moscow and Washington have confirmed. The talk lasted for about an hour and a half, during which the two leaders discussed a broad range of issues, primarily the Ukraine conflict, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

The phone call turned out to be “lengthy and highly productive,” Trump said in a post on his Truth social media platform. “We discussed Ukraine, the Middle East, Energy, Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Dollar, and various other subjects,” the US president wrote.

The two leaders have agreed they “want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the War with Russia/Ukraine,” Trump said, announcing an “immediate” start of negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict.

 

Wednesday’s call represents the first official top-level contact between Moscow and Washington since Trump took office in January. While phone conversations between Trump and Putin have been rumored for weeks, none have been officially confirmed, with both sides stating only they had been maintaining contact through various unspecified government channels.

12 February 2025

21:03 GMT

The phone conversation between Putin and Trump has become the “main event” of the year thus far, according to the Vice Speaker of the Russian parliament’s upper chamber, Konstantin Kosachev. The talks have laid the foundation for future contacts, any “breakthroughs are still far away,” he warned, while expressing cautious optimism about the looming negotiations. 

“The situation, as they say, is without the right to make a mistake for both sides. I am sure that this is how the two leaders will instruct their negotiating teams,” Kosachev wrote on his Telegram channel. “The mistakes will remain on the conscience of the Ukrainian and European politicians who provoked the current conflict. They will be held accountable by their voters.”

 

20:35 GMT

Europeans and Kiev must have a say in resolving the Ukraine conflict, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said, in the aftermath of the Trump-Putin phone talks.

“Peace can only be achieved together. And that means: with Ukraine and with the Europeans,” she told Politico. “We must take this path together so that peace returns to Europe.”

19:25 GMT

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said she is not aware of any preconditions placed on Russia by US President Donald Trump before the negotiations. At the same time, she did not rule out their existence. She also said it was too early to talk about a potential visit by Trump to Russia or the necessary conditions for that to actually happen.

19:20 GMT

The US views President Vladimir Putin and Russia as a “great competitor” and “at times an adversary,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said following the phone call between the two leaders.

“As the president has said as well, he enjoys having good diplomatic relationships with leaders around the world, finding that common ground, calling them out when they are wrong and leading from a position of peace through strength,” Leavitt told journalists.

18:45 GMT

The White House has described the contacts between the US president and Russian and Ukrainian leaders as “very positive,” reiterating Washington’s proclaimed commitment to bringing the Ukraine conflict to an end.

18:44 GMT

The conversation with Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky went “very well,” US President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. During the conversation, Zelensky expressed his desire to achieve “peace,” Trump claimed, reiterating that it was “time to stop this ridiculous war.” The call followed shortly after the US president spoke with Putin.

18:31 GMT

Putin and Trump discussed prisoner swaps between the two nations during the call. The US leader assured the Russian president that Washington would fulfill all of its obligations, the Kremlin press service has said. While it did not elaborate, the discussion apparently concerned Marc Fogel, a former US embassy employee who had been convicted in Russia on drug trafficking charges and returned to America earlier this week. In return, the US is expected to release Alexander Vinnik, a Russian crypto businessman who has been in US custody on money laundering charges, his lawyer confirmed to RT earlier on Wednesday.

18:22 GMT

Putin and Trump have agreed the two countries should “work together,” Moscow and Washington have confirmed.

 

“The Russian president supported one of the main theses of the head of the American state that the time has come for our countries to work together,” the Kremlin press service has said.

17:59 GMT

The Trump-Putin talks were followed closely by a conversation between the US leader and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky. According to Kiev, the conversation lasted for about an hour.

17:47 GMT

Both leaders backed the idea of resolving the Ukraine conflict through diplomacy, Peskov has said in a comment to Russian media.

 

“President Trump spoke in favor of a speedy end to hostilities and a peaceful resolution to the problem. President Putin, for his part, stressed the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict and agreed with Trump that a long-term settlement could be achieved through peace talks,” the Kremlin spokesman stated.

 

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