Donald Trump has said Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” begin ceasefire negotiations after a two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin on Monday.
The US president said the conversation with Mr Putin was “excellent”, as he also laid out plans for opening trade with Russia after the war was over.
After the call, he spoke with with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders in hopes of making progress toward a ceasefire.
He also claimed that talks between Russia and Ukraine could be hosted by The Vatican. “Let the process being,” he wrote in a Truth Social post.
Moscow also said that Putin was now ready to work towards peace and on a memorandum about future peace talks.
The call came after Mr Trump last week vowed to meet Putin “as soon as we can” during a diplomatic fiasco prompted by the Russian president shunning peace talks in Turkey.
Earlier, US vice president JD Vance told reporters the administration realised there was an “impasse” that needed to be resolved to bring an end to the conflict.
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Key Points
- Ceasefire negotiations to begin 'immediately', says Trump
- Russia ready to work toward ending fighting, Moscow says after Trump call
- Ukraine, Russia, US, EU and UK leaders could meet, Zelensky says
- Call went 'very well', says Trump
- Trump-Putin talk for two hours on crucial call
Trump says it would be 'great' to have Russia-Ukraine talks at the Vatican
22:34
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has said "it would be great" for Russia and Ukraine to hold ceasefire talks at the Vatican, saying it would add extra significance to the proceedings.
Trump, describing his phone call earlier with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he told him, "When are we going to end this, Vladimir?"
Recap: Putin and Trump discuss peace and trade in two hour phone call
22:19
On Monday, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin sat down and spoke for two hours over the phone.
Both leaders said the call was a success, with Putin agreeing to work towards a peace deal with Ukraine.
Here is an overview of the call:
- The call began at around 3:30pm UK time, and lasted for two hours.
- The pair spoke over an encrypted line, Putin from Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi and Trump in Washington.
- Putin said the call was “very informative and helpful”.
- Moscow said it was ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about future peace talks, as Trump said negotiations will now begin “immediately”.
- Trump said the call went “very well” and spoke to several world leaders Volodymyr Zelensky, Emmanuel Macron and Giorgia Meloni after he spoke with Putin.
- He also said that ceasefire negotiations could be held by the Vatican.
- They are said to have addressed each other by their first names, and Putin congratulated Trump on the birth of his latest grandson, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said.
- The pair also discussed a potential US-Russia trade deal, which Trump said was a possibility once the war was over.
- They also discussed a potential new prisoner swap during the call, as Ushakov said the two countries were working out details of an exchange involving nine people on each side.
- After the call, Zelensky said it was possible that leaders from Ukraine, Russia, US, EU and UK leaders could meet.
Trump says he 'made progress' on call with Putin
21:59
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump said he “made progress” on Monday during his call with Vladimir Putin, and that he also spoke to the heads of most European nations.
He also responded briefly to two shouted questions from reporters — if he thought Putin wanted peace, and if he thought Pope Leo could help broker it.
In both instances, he responded in the affirmative, saying: “I do.”
Putin is again pulling the strings over Ukraine - these peace talks will lead nowhere
21:52
Vladimir Putin was quick on the draw with an announcement that said nothing after his two-hour phone call with Donald Trump, as the Russian president grabbed the narrative before the Oval Office had figured out what the story even was.
Donald Trump claims his two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin went ‘very well’, but it is the Russian president who calls the shots, writes Sam Kiley, The Independent’s world affairs editor:
Watch: Trump addresses two-hour phone call with Putin
21:36
,
Athena Stavrou
Trump and Putin spoke on first-name basis, Kremlin says
21:20
,
Athena Stavrou
The Kremlin has described more details about Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin’s phone call on Monday.
Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov stressed the warm nature of the conversation, saying the two men addressed each other by their first names and Putin congratulated Trump on the birth of his latest grandson.
"Trump said: Vladimir, you can pick up the phone at any time, I will be happy to answer, I will be happy to talk to you," Ushakov said.
Putin and Trump discussed 'impressive' prospects for US-Russia ties, Kremlin says
21:03
,
Athena Stavrou
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed "impressive" prospects for ties between their two countries in a phone call on Monday, the Kremlin has said.
Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters that the two leaders had not discussed a timeline for a ceasefire in Ukraine, but that Trump had stressed his interest in reaching agreements quickly.
"The presidents also spoke in some detail about the future of our relations, and President Trump, I can say, spoke quite emotionally about the prospects for these relations," Ushakov said.
"He specifically emphasised that the prospects for bilateral relations after the Ukrainian conflict is resolved look impressive, and that as the president of the United States, he sees Russia as one of America's most important partners in trade and economic matters."
Russia outlaws Amnesty International in latest crackdown on opposition
20:44
,
Athena Stavrou
Russia has outlawed Amnesty International, designating it an "undesirable organisation" and criminalising involvement with the human rights group in the country.
This move, announced Monday by the Russian Prosecutor General’s office, further intensifies the Kremlin’s crackdown on dissent, which has escalated dramatically since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The ban effectively shuts down Amnesty’s operations within Russia and threatens anyone cooperating with or supporting the organisation with prosecution.
Our reporter Albert Toth has the full story:
World leaders welcome Pope's offer to host Russia-Ukraine talks
20:32
,
Athena Stavrou
European and US leaders have welcomed Pope Leo XIV's offer to host Russia-Ukraine talks at the Vatican,
Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said on Monday that European leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, spoke to US President Donald Trump after he had a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"Work is underway to immediately start negotiations between the parties that can lead to a ceasefire as soon as possible and build the conditions for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine," Meloni's office said in a statement.
"In this regard, the Holy Father's willingness to host the talks at the Vatican was considered positive. Italy is ready to do its part to facilitate contacts and work for peace," the statement added.
Putin and Trump discuss new prisoner swap
20:12
,
Athena Stavrou
The Kremlin has said Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed a new prisoner swap during their 2-hour phone call on Monday.
Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said the two countries were working out details of an exchange of prisoners jailed in Russia and the United States involving nine people on each side, although he did not say when it might take place.
Trump and Putin are both in favour of meeting in person and will assign their teams to work on preparing a meeting, Ushakov said, but no venue has been agreed.
Putin addresses Russia Watch: Ukraine ceasefire hopes after phone call with Trump
20:02
,
Athena Stavrou
Ukraine, Russia, US, EU and UK leaders could meet, Zelensky says
19:43
,
Athena Stavrou
Leaders from Ukraine, Russia, the US, EU and Britain could meet in an effort to secure a peace deal, Zelensky has said.
Speaking to reporters in Kyiv after holding two phone calls with Donald Trump on Monday, Zelensky said he hoped the meeting could happen as soon as possible and that it could be hosted by Turkey, the Vatican or Switzerland.
EU leaders thank Trump for 'tireless efforts'
19:34
,
Athena Stavrou
After his phone call with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump spoke with a number of European leaders to inform them about the discussion.
EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said they had a “good call” and thanked Trump for “his tireless efforts to bring a ceasefire to Ukraine.”
Pictured: Putin talks to reporters after phone call with Trump
19:22
,
Athena Stavrou
Trump lays out possibility of 'largescale' US-Russia trade deal
19:13
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has spoken about the possibility of a trade deal between the US and Russia after the war with Ukraine is over.
Trump and Vladimir Putin discussed trade during their “excellent” two-hour phone call on Monday.
“Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic “bloodbath” is over, and I agree,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social after the call.
“There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED. Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country.”
The US banned imports of Russian oil, gas and coal after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Talks could be hosted by The Vatican, says Trump
19:04
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has said that ceasefire negotiations could be held by the Vatican.
In a social media post after his two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin, Trump said: “The Vatican, as represented by the Pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations. Let the process begin!”
US vice president JD Vance met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican earlier today, amid a flurry of US-led diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine.
Ceasefire negotiations to begin 'immediately', says Trump
18:54
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has said Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” begin ceasefire negotiations after his two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin went “very well”.
He said: “Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War.
“The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.”
Trump added that he had informed several world leaders including Volodymyr Zelensky, Emmanuel Macron and Giorgia Meloni in a call after he spoke with Putin.
Moscow has also said that Putin was now ready to work towards peace and on a memorandum about future peace talks.
Trump's statement in full
18:50
Donald Trump has posted the following to Truth Social after his phone call with Vladimir Putin:
“Just completed my two hour call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. I believe it went very well.
“Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War. The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.
“The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later.
“Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic “bloodbath” is over, and I agree. There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED. Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country.
“Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will begin immediately. I have so informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, President Emmanuel Macron, of France, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, of Italy, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, of Germany, and President Alexander Stubb, of Finland, during a call with me, immediately after the call with President Putin.
“The Vatican, as represented by the Pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations. Let the process begin!”
Call went 'very well', says Trump
18:41
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has said his two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin went “very well”.
Posting on Truth Social, the US president said: “The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later.”
He also claimed that Russia and Ukraine will “immediately start negotiations toward a ceasefire”, but that the conditions will be negotiated by them.
Full story: Trump and Putin end phone call after two hours, White House says
18:30
,
Athena Stavrou
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have concluded a phone call during which the two leaders discussed efforts to bring an end to the unprovoked war Putin started by ordering the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A White House official said the call ended roughly two hours after it began on Monday.
Russian state media reported that Putin described the call as “informative and useful” and stated Moscow was ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about future peace talks.
Andrew Feinberg in Washington, D.C has the full story:
Putin gives more detail on Trump call
18:16
,
Athena Stavrou
We are now getting more detail from Vladimir Putin on his phone call with Donald Trump.
The Russian president told reporters that the efforts to end the war in Ukraine were on the right track and that Moscow was ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about a possible future peace agreement.
"We have agreed with the president of the United States that Russia will propose and is ready to work with the Ukrainian side on a memorandum on a possible future peace accord, defining a number of positions, such as, for example, the principles of settlement, the timing of a possible peace agreement," Putin told reporters near the Black Sea resort of Sochi.
"I would like to note that, on the whole, Russia's position is clear. The main thing for us is to eliminate the root causes of this crisis," Putin said.
"We just need to determine the most effective ways to move towards peace."
US confirms call is over
18:00
,
Athena Stavrou
The White House has now also confirmed that Donald Trump’s phone call with Vladimir Putin has finished.
Russian state media reported that the “helpful” call lasted more than two hours, and that Russia was ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about future peace talks.
Trump phone call 'very informative' - Putin
17:54
,
Athena Stavrou
Vladimir Putin has said he his phone call with Donald Trump was “very informative and helpful”.
Russian State media said Moscow was ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about future peace talks, after the two hour phone call on Monday.
Call over, lasted over 2 hours
17:51
,
Athena Stavrou
The call between Trump and Putin has now finished, after the pair spoke for over two hours.
Russian media reported that the call was “very informative and helpful”, and that Putin said talks are “generally on the right track”.
Do Trump and Putin speak more often than is officially announced?
17:42
,
Athena Stavrou
The Kremlin said in March that there may have been more contacts between Trump and Putin than the publicly announced telephone calls over recent months.
Before the contacts with Trump, Putin last spoke to a sitting US president in February 2022, when he and Joe Biden spoke shortly before the Russian leader ordered tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine.
Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward in his 2024 book "War" reported that Trump had direct conversations as many as seven times with Putin after he left the White House in 2021.
Asked if that were true in an interview with Bloomberg last year, Trump said: "If I did, it's a smart thing." The Kremlin denied Woodward's report.
Reuters, The Washington Post and Axios reported separately that Trump and Putin spoke in early November. The Kremlin also denied those reports.
17:23
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump has reportedly already spoken to Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of his call with Putin.
Reuters cited a source familiar with the matter, reporting that the Ukrainian and US president had spoken by phone on Monday.
Their call was originally scheduled to take place after Trump’s call with the Russian president, which is currently underway.
How often have Trump and Putin spoken?
17:07
,
Athena Stavrou
After Trump's inauguration in January, the first publicly announced telephone call between Trump and Putin was on February 12.
Trump said then that both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had expressed a desire for peace in separate phone calls, and Trump ordered top US officials to begin talks on ending the war in Ukraine. They spoke again on March 18.
The Kremlin said they spoke for about 2 hours, one of the longest Putin calls.
Putin agreed to stop attacking Ukrainian energy facilities temporarily but declined to endorse a full 30-day ceasefire that Trump hoped would be the first step toward a permanent peace deal.
Ukraine and Russia accused each other of breaking that moratorium on attacking energy facilities.
Vance meets Pope amid US-led ceasefire efforts
16:57
,
Athena Stavrou
JD Vance met Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican today, amid a flurry of US-led diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The US vice president, who is a Catholic convert, extended an invitation to Leo to visit the United States during the meeting.
He also gave the Augustinian pope a copy of two of St Augustine's most seminal works, The City Of God and On Christian Doctrine, the vice president's office said. Another gift was a Chicago Bears T-shirt with Leo's name on it.
In return, Leo gave Mr Vance a bronze sculpture with the words in Italian: "Peace is a fragile flower," and a coffee-table sized picture book of the papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace.
What are Trump and Putin discussing?
16:38
,
Athena Stavrou
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are currently speaking over the phone.
The call has been set up as the US president looks to secure a ceasefire deal between Ukraine and Russia.
Earlier, the US vice president JD Vance told reporters the administration realised there was an “impasse” that needed to be resolved to bring an end to the conflict.
He said: “And I think the president's going to say to President Putin: 'Look, are you serious? Are you real about this?'”
Mr Trump said his discussion with Mr Putin would focus on stopping the "bloodbath" of the war.
It also will cover trade, a sign that the US president might be seeking to use financial incentives to broker some kind of agreement after Russia's invasion led to severe sanctions by the US and its allies that have steadily eroded Moscow's ability to grow.
The Kremlin said earlier that the call was to be based on results of Istanbul talks last week.
"The conversation is important, taking into account the negotiations held in Istanbul," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov Peskov said. "As for the talks, we [in the Kremlin] have already said everything we could, we underscored the basic points.”
Russia outlaws Amnesty International in latest crackdown on opposition
16:17
,
Alex Croft
Russia has outlawed Amnesty International, designating it an "undesirable organisation" and criminalising involvement with the human rights group in the country.
This move, announced Monday by the Russian Prosecutor General’s office, further intensifies the Kremlin’s crackdown on dissent, which has escalated dramatically since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The ban effectively shuts down Amnesty’s operations within Russia and threatens anyone cooperating with or supporting the organisation with prosecution.
Our reporter Albert Toth has the news:
Where are Putin and Trump speaking from?
16:13
,
Athena Stavrou
The White House has confirmed that a phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is currently underway.
Putin is speaking from Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi while Trump was in Washington.
Russian attacks on Ukraine ongoing as Trump and Putin discuss peace
16:02
,
Alex Croft
Let’s turn our attention to near the Ukrainian frontline, where Russian attacks have far-from let up despite Washington’s push for peace and today’s Trump-Putin phone call.
On Sunday, Kyiv said Russia fired a record of 273 drones at Ukraine, killing one woman. On Monday, it said a further 112 were fired.
Photos shared by Ukraine’s emergency services shows blazes tearing through the buildings struck by Russia weaponry.
Around three people have been killed in the past day, including two in the southern Kherson region and one in the Donetsk region. Injuries were also recorded in Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk.
Despite repeated diplomatic efforts towards a ceasefire, Russian drone attacks on civilian areas in Ukraine remain unrelenting.
Here are some pictures of Russia’s attack on the Chuguiv district of the Kharkiv region:
Trump-Putin phone call underway
15:39
,
Alex Croft
The phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is now underway, a White House official has confirmed.
We’ll bring you all the latest lines as they come in.
What happened last time Trump and Putin spoke over the phone?
15:37
,
Alex Croft
The phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin should now be underway , if it did indeed begin at the scheduled time of 3pm BST.
It’s the first public call between the pair in more than two months, after they held a two-hour phone call on March 18. According to some reports, however, they have held a number of phone calls which were not publicised since Mr Trump took office January.
The March phone call, despite its length, did not appear to bring the US president any close to his goal.
Trump had, at the time, began proposing a 30-day unconditional ceasefire to allow for Moscow and Kyiv to hash out the terms of a peace agreement. This proposal was rejected by Putin.
Not only did the Russian president refuse to bow down to Mr Trump’s demands, the US president even issued some warm words afterwards.
"We had a great call," Donald Trump told Fox News, with special envoy Steve Witkoff adding: "I would commend President Putin for all he did today on that call to move his country close to a final peace deal.”
The call did, however, lay the seeds for an apparent ceasefire on energy and infrastructure - but this was a ceasefire which Russia was accused of breaching hundreds of times by Kyiv and its western allies. Moscow also accused Kyiv of breaking the truce terms.
EU and UK call on Moscow to show readiness for peace in joint summit
15:22
,
Alex Croft
As a busy day of diplomacy gets underway in Washington to push for peace in Ukraine, European leaders have vowed to support Kyiv for “as long as it takes and as intensely as needed”.
EU commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and council chief Antonia Costa arrived in London for the first bilateral EU-UK summit since Brexit.
Following the summit, they made a joint statement which addressed peave in Ukraine, reaffirming their firm support for Kyiv’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity
During their first bilateral summit after Brexit, the EU and the UK have called on Russia to fully and unconditionally cease fire in Ukraine.
The statement also called for a a tribunal of Russia’s war.
"We are committed to ensuring full accountability for war crimes and other serious crimes committed in connection with Russia’s war of aggression, including by the establishment of a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine."
Vance: US ready to walk away from peace efforts
15:02
,
Alex Croft
More comments are through from US vice president JD Vance, who spoke with reporters before boarding a flight in Rome after meeting Pope Leo on Monday.
"I think honestly that President Putin, he doesn't quite know how to get out of the war," Mr Vance said, adding that he had just spoken to Trump.
He said it "takes two to tango. I know the President's willing to do that, but if Russia is not willing to do that, then we're eventually just going to say, this is not our war."
Washington will be “more than open to walking away”, Mr Vance added. Washington is “not going to spin its wheels here. We want to see outcomes.
"We're going to try to end it, but if we can't end it, we're eventually going to say: 'You know what? That was worth a try, but we're not doing anymore.'"
Trump-Putin call could shift US president back in 'anti-Ukraine direction'
14:52
,
Alex Croft
Our reporter Tom Watling has been discussing the upcoming phone call with experts:
We have some pre-emptive analysis of today’s call between US president Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), says today’s call between the two leaders risks shifting Mr Trump back in an “anti-Ukraine direction”.
The US president is known to have quickly shifting opinions, often in line with the last person to whom he has spoken. His previous comments about Ukraine being responsible for the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion came shortly after the US president spoke to Mr Putin on the phone in February, and just a day after a Russian delegation met with the Trump administration in Saudi Arabia.
A public feud between Mr Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky later that month saw Kyiv’s leader prematurely kicked out of the White House.
After Mr Trump met with Mr Zelensky at the funeral of Pope Francis in April, his tone shifted again to become more pro-Kyiv.
Now there are concerns Mr Trump’s views could shift again.
“These calls [between Trump and Putin] tend to be terrible for Ukraine,” says Mr Bergmann.
“There is a danger that Trump buys Putin’s talking points and that shifts him in an anti-Ukraine direction, which is a path he is already prone to follow.
“I doubt this call leads to any breakthroughs toward peace. But it may help Russia’s efforts to convince Trump to blame Ukraine for the war continuing.”
Trump to ask Putin in phone call: 'Are you serious about peace?'
14:39
,
Alex Croft
We’re little over 20 minutes away from the scheduled phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, and noises are emerging from the Trump administration on what to expect.
US vice president JD Vance, who has been in Rome meeting with the new Pope Leo XIV, said Mr Trump is going to question whether Putin is serious about achieving peace.
"We realize there's a bit of an impasse here. And I think the president's going to say to (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin: 'Look, are you serious? Are you real about this?'" Mr Vance told reporters as he prepared t
