Trump reportedly had “very good” call with Zelensky about ceasefire efforts, as deal gets closer to reality

President Trump said he had a “very good telephone call” with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, after Moscow and Kyiv accused each other of violating the terms of a partial cease-fire brokered by the White House a day before.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked President Donald Trump for additional Patriot missile systems, and Trump told him he’d help him find what was available “particularly in Europe,” according to a readout of the two leaders’ Wednesday call from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz.

he statement also noted that the two leaders “agreed to share information closely between their defense staffs,” with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters that intelligence sharing for defense will be shared between the US and Ukraine.

President Trump also “discussed Ukraine’s electrical supply and nuclear power plants,” according to the statement and suggested American ownership. Trump “fully briefed” Zelensky on his phone call with Russian President Putin on Tuesday, with the statement saying that the nations agreed to what it called “a partial ceasefire against energy.”

Trump said that “much of the discussion” was based on that call with Putin “in order to align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs.” The president also suggested that Zelenskyy consider allowing the U.S. to help run its power plants following the war as something akin to a security guarantee, according to a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Michael Waltz.

Mr Trump is looking to lock down a peace deal that will end hostilities, help the US recoup some of the money they have given Ukraine, and provide an incentive for the US to stay in and provide a security guarantee to Ukraine for the long term.

While we are inching ever closer to a peace deal being realized, we are not there yet. Specific terms need to be ironed out, and it is not beyond the realm of possibility for either Ukrainian President Zelensky or Russian President Putin, to pull out of the deal at the last minute. But as of now, we are getting into the final lap before crossing the finish line of a peace deal.