President Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia are expected to speak Monday about the war in Ukraine, in a highly anticipated telephone call that comes amid a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at resolving the three-year old conflict.
The call, which Mr. Trump said would take place at 10 a.m. Eastern, would be the second publicly acknowledged phone conversation between the two men since the American president’s second term began. The first call, which took place in February, was celebrated in Moscow as a sign of weakening Western resolve to isolate and punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
“Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war, a war that should have never happened, will end,” Mr. Trump wrote on Saturday on his social media platform, Truth Social.
Mr. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, confirmed the planned call and said that the Kremlin is grateful for U.S. diplomatic efforts. The compliment was the latest example of attempts by both Russia and Ukraine to sway Mr. Trump with flattery and effusive language.
“If the political services of the U.S. — which we highly value and are grateful to the American side — if they actually help us reach our goals with peaceful means, that would indeed be preferable” to the continuation of the war, Mr. Peskov told Russian state media on Monday.
Mr. Trump took office in January promising to bring a swift end to fighting in Ukraine, but soon encountered the deep, seemingly irreconcilable differences between the warring countries. Mr. Trump has turned to a combination of threats and inducements — most of them unfulfilled — to get Russia and Ukraine stop fighting. But both sides believe that time is on their side.
In his dealings with Mr. Trump, Mr. Putin has tried to appease the U.S. president by appearing to negotiate peace, but without offering any meaningful concessions to Kyiv. Given his repeated claims that Russia has the means to obtain all its goals in the war, making concessions might risk making Mr. Putin look weak.
The inherent contradictions of Mr. Putin’s strategy were on display over the weekend. In an apparent show of strength, Russia unleashed deadly drone strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine on Saturday and Sunday, even though Mr. Trump has criticized such attacks as counterproductive.
On Saturday, Russian attacks killed at least 14 Ukrainian civilians. On Sunday, at least one civilian died after Russia targeted Kyiv with one of the largest drone attacks of the war.
Mr. Trump has not commented on the latest attacks. In late April, however, he issued a rare rebuke of Mr. Putin for launching a similar attack.
“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing,” Mr. Trump wrote. “Vladimir, STOP!”
Mr. Trump said that after speaking to Mr. Putin on Monday he would speak to President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and his European allies.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain said in a statement that he spoke with leaders of the United States, Italy, France and Germany on Sunday night to discuss forcing Russia to accept an unconditional ceasefire, and the use of new sanctions “if Russia failed to engage seriously.”
The phone calls come amid a series of high-wire diplomatic maneuvers by Ukraine and Russia that have raised hopes for a negotiated solution to a conflict that has killed or maimed more than a million soldiers. These efforts, however, have also exposed just how far apart the two sides remain.
On Friday in Istanbul, representatives from Russia and Ukraine met for the first direct talks in three years. In the brief meeting, the two sides agreed to the largest prisoner exchange of the war, and to detail their conditions for a cease-fire.
On Sunday, Mr. Zelensky met in Rome with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after the three attended Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural Mass. The meeting was a win for Mr. Zelensky, who appeared to improve his relations with Mr. Vance. At a contentious White House meeting in February, the vice president chastised him in front of television cameras.
Mr. Putin, has been flexing his own diplomatic muscle this month, in an apparent attempt to show Russia’s growing alliances. He has hosted more than 20 heads of state, including the leaders of China and Brazil, for a military parade in Moscow. Since then, he has had a high number of meetings and phone calls with developing country leaders.
Ukraine and its European allies have been demanding that Russia accept an unconditional 30-day cease-fire before beginning peace negotiations. Mr. Putin has demanded the opposite, saying that negotiations over what he calls the “root causes” of the war must take place before his forces, who are on the offensive in Ukraine, lay down arms.
Mr. Trump in effect had sided with Mr. Putin. Last week he publicly told Mr. Zelensky to start talks with Russia, precipitating a series of events that led to the meeting in Istanbul.
Attention on Monday will be focused on whether the call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin leads to an in-person meeting. Mr. Trump has long claimed that only his negotiating acumen and charisma could end the war in Ukraine, and he has signaled openness to meeting the Russian president.
Steve Witkoff, Mr. Trump’s unofficial envoy to the Kremlin, said in an interview with ABC on Sunday that the call could “clear up some of the logjam and get us to the place that we need to get to.”
“The president is determined to get something done here,” said Mr. Witkoff.
Anatoly Kurmanaev covers Russia and its transformation following the invasion of Ukraine.
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