President Vladimir Putin has rejected an immediate and full ceasefire in Ukraine, agreeing only to halt attacks on energy infrastructure, following a call with US President Donald Trump.
The Russian leader declined to sign up to the comprehensive month-long ceasefire that Trump’s team recently worked out with Ukrainians in Saudi Arabia.
He said a comprehensive truce could only work if foreign military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine came to an end.
Ukraine’s European allies have previously rejected such conditions.
The US and Russian leaders did agree that further peace talks would take place immediately in the Middle East, but the results of the call amount to a retreat in the Trump administration’s position from where it stood a week ago.
When a US delegation met Ukrainian counterparts in Jeddah last Tuesday, they convinced Kyiv to agree to their proposal for an “immediate” 30-day ceasefire, across land, air and sea.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was receptive to the idea of a truce covering energy infrastructure, but wanted more details first.
“I think it will be right that we will have a conversation with President Trump and we will know in detail what the Russians offered the Americans or what the Americans offered the Russians,” Zelensky said.
Trump posted on social media that Tuesday’s call with the Russian leader was “very good and productive”.
“We agreed to an immediate Ceasefire on all Energy and Infrastructure, with an understanding that we will be working quickly to have a Complete Ceasefire and, ultimately, an END to this very horrible War between Russia and Ukraine,” the US president said on Truth Social.
“Many elements of a Contract for Peace were discussed, including the fact that thousands of soldiers are being killed, and both President Putin and President Zelenskyy would like to see it end.”
After last week’s talks in Jeddah, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said “the ball” was in Russia’s court, after the Ukrainians accepted Washington’s proposal for a full ceasefire.
But the White House’s statement following the Trump-Putin call made no reference to that agreement with Kyiv.
It instead said the two leaders agreed that “the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire”, followed by negotiations over a “maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, full ceasefire and permanent peace”.
But the Kremlin own statement on the call noted what it said were a “series of significant issues” around enforcing any agreement with Kyiv. And it said the end of foreign support and intelligence for Ukraine was a “key condition” for Russia.
Trump and Putin agreed to immediate technical-level talks towards a longer-term settlement, which the Kremlin said must be “complex, stable and long-term in nature”.
But it’s unclear if this means further negotiations between the US and Russia, or bilateral talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Ukraine will probably see the outcome of Tuesday’s much-anticipated phone call as Vladimir Putin playing for time, while he adds crippling conditions on any settlement.
The Russian leader has already tasted Trump’s readiness to cut off US support to Ukraine, and is trying to get him to repeat it – while tossing the ball back to Kyiv.
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