The Russian president has described his Monday phone call with Donald Trump as “substantive and quite candid”
Moscow is ready to work with Kiev on drafting a memorandum on a potential future peace agreement, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said following his phone call with American counterpart Donald Trump. He described the exchange as productive, “substantive and quite candid.”
The conversation on Monday lasted for over two hours and focused primarily on the Ukraine conflict. In a brief address to journalists after the call, Putin said the two leaders had agreed that Russia would propose a memorandum specifying principles and timing for a possible peace deal, as well as other matters, “including a potential temporary ceasefire, should the necessary agreements be reached.”
Putin stressed that “eliminating the root causes” of the Ukraine conflict “is what matters most to us.”
Below is the full text of his statement as published on the Kremlin website.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Our colleagues asked me to briefly comment on the outcome of my telephone conversation with the President of the United States.
This conversation has effectively taken place and lasted more than two hours. I would like to emphasise that it was both substantive and quite candid. Overall, I believe it was a very productive exchange.
First and foremost, I expressed my gratitude to the President of the United States for the support provided by the United States in facilitating the resumption of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine aimed at potentially reaching a peace agreement and resuming the talks which, as we know, were thwarted by the Ukrainian side in 2022.
The President of the United States shared his position on the cessation of hostilities and the prospects for a ceasefire. For my part, I noted that Russia also supports a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine crisis as well. What we need now is to identify the most effective ways towards achieving peace.
We agreed with the President of the United States that Russia would propose and is ready to engage with the Ukrainian side on drafting a memorandum regarding a potential future peace agreement. This would include outlining a range of provisions, such as the principles for settlement, the timeframe for a possible peace deal, and other matters, including a potential temporary ceasefire, should the necessary agreements be reached.
Contacts among participants of the Istanbul meeting and talks have resumed, which gives reason to believe that we are on the right track overall.
I would like to reiterate that the conversation was highly constructive, and I assess it positively. The key issue, of course, is now for the Russian side and the Ukrainian side to show their firm commitment to peace and to forge a compromise that would be acceptable to all parties.
Notably, Russia’s position is clear. Eliminating the root causes of this crisis is what matters most to us.
Should any clarifications be necessary, Press Secretary [Dmitry] Peskov and my aide, Mr Ushakov, will provide further details on today’s telephone talks with President Trump.
