Following phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, U.S. President Donald Trump stated his belief that an agreement will be reached to stop bloodshed. Trump emphasized his goal of bringing Russia and Ukraine together and stressed the need for Europe to contribute equally to the peace process.

President Donald Trump made statements regarding his phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky on Wednesday. Speaking to U.S. media, Trump said, “We had two very good phone calls, and I believe an agreement will be reached to stop bloodshed.”

Trump stated that his aim is to bring Russia and Ukraine together, adding, “I also want to stop the large payments that we have been making. I want Europe to pay the same amount as us because they didn’t do that during the Biden administration. Biden never even asked them to, because Biden was an extremely inadequate president.”

After his Tuesday meeting with Putin, Trump announced, “We immediately agreed on a ceasefire for all energy and infrastructure targets. During this process, we committed to working quickly for a complete ceasefire and ultimately ending this terrible war between Russia and Ukraine. Many aspects of a peace agreement were discussed. Both President Putin and President Zelensky want to end this war. This process has now truly begun, and hopefully, for the sake of humanity, we will succeed in this endeavor.” Zelensky also commented on his meeting with Trump, saying, “We had a positive, comprehensive, and open discussion. This meeting was an important step towards ending the war. Ukraine and the U.S. have agreed to continue working together to achieve the true end of the war and lasting peace. We believe that with the leadership of President Trump, permanent peace can be achieved within this year.”