Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky each spoke by phone with President Trump on Sunday, as Trump marked his 80th birthday and with the war in Ukraine expected to be on the agenda during this week’s Group of 7 summit.
Putin’s call with Trump lasted just under an hour, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, who briefed reporters afterward.
Ushakov said Trump emphasized the need to end hostilities and stated his readiness to influence European allies and Ukraine toward that goal, including at the G-7, which begins Monday in France.
Ushakov also said Trump asserted that recent Ukrainian strikes on civilian targets in Russia complicate a settlement, though the White House has not confirmed that, nor commented on the call. He also quoted Trump as saying that ending the war quickly could open the door to “a truly new quality of U.S.-Russian relations.”
Putin argued that attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure by Kyiv would not change Ukraine’s position on the battlefield, and said that if Zelensky wants a meeting with him, “let him come to Moscow,” according to Ushakov.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Russia soon, Ushakov said.
The leaders also discussed Iran, Ushakov said.
Zelensky said in a statement on the messaging app Telegram on Sunday that he had a “wonderful conversation” with Trump.
Beyond congratulating Trump on his birthday, the Ukrainian president said he thanked the U.S. president for supporting Ukraine.
He said they discussed “what could help bring peace closer now,” without providing details. Zelensky also informed Trump about how Ukraine’s position along the eastern front line has improved and strengthened.
“We agreed to discuss more during our meeting at the G-7 summit,” he said. Ukraine is among the non-G-7 members invited to attend.
The calls came as Trump prepared to mark his birthday with a UFC fight on the White House South Lawn on Sunday evening. Once it concludes, he is set to fly overnight to France for the summit.
Russia’s war in Ukraine has long frustrated Trump, who as a candidate claimed he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office. He has since stopped making such claims and tends to pivot away from the topic when pressed. He had also grown increasingly vexed by the Iran war, which has driven up gas prices, rattled financial markets and fueled inflation.
The diplomatic exchanges came against the backdrop of continued fighting in Ukraine. Ukrainian drone attacks killed one person and wounded nine others overnight in a residential building in the capital of Russia’s Oryol region, Gov. Andrei Klychkov said Sunday. Another drone attack killed one person Sunday in Russia’s Bryansk region, local authorities said.
A separate drone strike hit fuel storage facilities in Russia’s Yaroslavl region, about 440 miles from the Ukrainian border, sparking fires. Zelensky said the strike had hit “an oil facility that was important for the reserve of the aggressor state.”
Ukraine in recent months has stepped up attacks on Russian oil and gas infrastructure, with Zelensky noting that the sector drives Moscow’s war effort.
Separately, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday that the U.K. is investigating a sanctioned tanker, the Smyrtos, suspected of belonging to Russia’s “shadow fleet” of vessels used to evade sanctions tied to the war.
British forces boarded and detained the vessel in the English Channel in what the Defense Ministry called the first U.K.-led operation of its kind, carried out in coordination with French authorities.
“This operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fueling Putin’s war in Ukraine that they cannot hide,” Starmer said.
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