KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Donald Trump to broker peace in Ukraine like in “the Middle East” during a phone call Saturday, saying if Trump could stop one war, “others can be stopped as well”.
The call came a day after Russia launched a large-scale attack on Ukraine’s energy grid, knocking out power to parts of the capital Kyiv and nine other Ukrainian regions.
Diplomatic efforts to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have slowed in recent months, in part because global attention shifted to Israel’s two-year war with militant Palestinian group Hamas, Kyiv says.
Trump, who announced the first phase of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas on Wednesday, met Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks in August but failed to extract any kind of peace deal.
“I had a call with US President Donald Trump. A very positive and productive one,” Zelenskyy said on Facebook, congratulating Trump for his “outstanding” ceasefire plan in the Middle East.
“If a war can be stopped in one region, then surely other wars can be stopped as well, including the Russian war,” Zelenskyy added, calling for Trump to pressure Russia into negotiations.
Zelenskyy also said on X, they had discussed “opportunities to bolster our air defense, as well as concrete agreements that we are working on to ensure this. There are good options and solid ideas on how to truly strengthen us.”
TIES IMPROVED SINCE FEBRUARY
Relations between the two leaders have warmed dramatically since February, when they sparred during a televised meeting at the White House.
Trump has since grown more hostile towards Moscow while expressing sympathy for Ukraine.
In September, he wrote on Truth Social that Kyiv should try to “take back” all its occupied territory with Europe’s and NATO’s help.
US First Lady Melania Trump said Friday she had secured the release of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia after establishing an extraordinary back channel of communication with Putin.
Source: CNA
