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After Putin call, Trump says Russia-Ukraine talks to begin 'immediately'
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 19, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
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Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 19, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Trump's call with Putin leads to immediate Russia-Ukraine negotiations for a ceasefire, with potential Vatican involvement.
(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said his call with Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Monday went very well and that Moscow and Kyiv would immediately start negotiations toward a ceasefire and end to the war.
Under pressure from Trump, delegates from the warring countries met last week in Istanbul for the first time since 2022, though they failed to agree to a truce. Kyiv says it is ready for a ceasefire now; Moscow says conditions must be met first.
"Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will begin immediately," Trump said in a Truth Social post following his call with Putin, which lasted two hours.
Trump said he held a joint call with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as well as the leaders of the European Union, France, Italy, Germany and Finland following his call with Putin. Trump informed those leaders that negotiations would start immediately, he said.
Trump floated the idea of newly installed Pope Leo as host for the talks, saying: "The Vatican, as represented by the Pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations."
Trump said that the "tone and spirit of the conversation (with Putin) were excellent," and that Russia wants to do "largescale" trade with the U.S. once the war is over.
He said that Ukraine would also benefit from trade "in the process of rebuilding its country."
(Reporting by Rami Ayyub; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
The main topic is the initiation of Russia-Ukraine negotiations following a call between Trump and Putin.
What role does the Vatican play in the negotiations? The Vatican, represented by Pope Leo, is suggested as a potential host for the talks.
What are the conditions for the ceasefire? Kyiv is ready for a truce, but Moscow has conditions that need to be met first.
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