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The United States has already had “very serious” talks with Moscow about ending its war in Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump said late Friday, adding that discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin could yield “significant” action soon.
“We will be speaking, and I think will perhaps do something that’ll be significant,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It’s got to stop, so whatever I can do to stop it,” Trump said about the Ukraine conflict.
“And we are having discussions,” he added.
The U.S. president refused to comment on whether he had already spoken with the Russian leader on the matter and when their last conversation had been. Trump also declined to comment on the role of China in facilitating a dialogue with Putin.
On the campaign trail before he won the U.S. election in November, Trump repeatedly boasted about how fast he could end Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. president claimed earlier this month that a meeting with Putin was being set up, though the Kremlin said no substantial preparations are under way.
Putin on Jan. 24 said he is open to meet with Trump to “talk calmly” about issues including the war on Ukraine. That was days after Trump threatened to hit Russia with massive tariffs and sanctions if it does not make a deal to end the conflict.
Meanwhile, Trump froze nearly all U.S. foreign aid funding on Jan. 24, including to Ukraine, leaving humanitarian organizations scrambling to find cash for programs ranging from demining and veteran rehabilitation to maintaining hospitals and restoring bombed power plants.
Current military transfers are exempt, having been secured under the Biden administration. However, future supplies are uncertain, with Trump vowing to end the conflict swiftly and criticizing his predecessor for giving Kyiv nearly €100 billion in money and materiel.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military is increasingly struggling. A shortage of infantry, artillery, and air defense means units are being forced to give ground, as Russian troops bulldoze their way from village to village in the eastern Donbas region.
Late Friday and early Saturday, Moscow launched a barrage of missiles and drones against Ukraine, killing eight people and damaging dozens of residential buildings as well as energy infrastructure across the country, Ukrainian officials said. The Interior Ministry in Kyiv said on Telegram that a Russian missile struck a residential building in the central city of Poltava, killing four people and injuring 13.
“This night, Russia launched an attack against our cities, using various types of weapons: missiles, strike drones, aerial bombs. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post, adding that damage was caused in six regions. “Another wave of terrorist crime,” he said.
Zelenskyy said the Russian missiles hit the center of Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa, a UNESCO World Heritage site, seriously historic buildings and injuring seven people. He said Norwegian diplomats were among those “who were in the epicenter of the strike” in Odesa.
Calling the attack “a deliberate strike,” Zelenskyy repeated his calls for Kyiv’s allies to help strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses.
