<p>President Donald Trump on Wednesday confirmed he had a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin as Washington aims to build momentum toward a peace deal to end the ongoing war between Moscow and Ukraine.</p>
<p>Ending the war, which some experts estimate has resulted in at least 2 million military casualties, has been a top priority of Trump’s second term, but achieving this goal has proven to be challenging. The effort appeared to gain some traction over the weekend, when Trump sent two of his top negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, overseas to discuss a potential deal with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.</p>
<p>Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews that he discussed the agreement during a personal phone call with Putin, which reportedly took place on Tuesday.</p>
<p>“We had a great conversation,” the president stated. “He is wanting to make a deal. And if Zelensky is wanting to make a deal, that would be very nice.”</p>
<p>Trump added, “The holdup is two people that hate each other.”</p>
<p>In the latest negotiations, the United States is exploring whether Ukraine and Russia could take steps to de-escalate the conflict during the winter while restarting discussions toward a broader peace agreement, according to President Zelensky. Zelensky mentioned to Axios on Monday that while he believes Putin is counting on a harsh winter to weaken Ukraine, he does not think the Russian president would want to provoke Trump ahead of the midterm elections, potentially creating an opportunity for diplomacy.</p>
<p>Zelensky indicated on Tuesday that he could meet with Trump later this month, as the war has now extended beyond four and a half years.</p>
<p>“It’s going to take both sides to make some compromises and narrow the issues between them, and we think we have the ingredients to get to that place,” Witkoff said on Sunday after meeting with Putin and Zelensky over the weekend. “It is very difficult, but we are committed, we care, and we hope all of that leads to a successful, peaceful diplomatic resolution.”</p>
<p>Before meeting with Zelensky in Ukraine on Sunday, Witkoff and Kushner held a three-hour meeting with Putin in Moscow on Saturday. The Kremlin described the meeting as “highly useful,” while Trump’s team expressed optimism about “new ideas” and “a lot of progress in Moscow,” indicating hope that a new round of U.S.-mediated Ukraine-Russia talks would be announced soon.</p>
<p>Zelensky also commended the “very substantive” conversation with Trump’s envoys, stating that Ukraine is prepared for trilateral talks.</p>