Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, consented on Wednesday to a limited ceasefire with Russia that would concentrate on "energy and other civilian infrastructure." More than three years after Moscow invaded his nation, Zelensky, who made the statement during an hour-long phone conversation with President Donald Trump, said it was the first step toward what he hoped would be "permanent peace."
The most tangible outcome of Trump's efforts to put an end to the conflict in Ukraine would be the 30-day ceasefire. In an effort to broker an agreement and reestablish more general ties with the Kremlin, which have been mostly stalled since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for a long time the day before.
Both Trump and Zelensky described their meeting as constructive, which is a significant change from their last direct meeting, in which the Ukrainian leader was expelled from the White House for the first time in modern history. The conversation on Wednesday was "the most substantive and positive one in recent times," Zelensky told reporters.
However, the timing of the Trump-Zelensky meeting was only the latest example of Ukraine's marginalization in discussions about its future. It happened in the midst of concerns over whether Putin would fulfill his promises to Trump to halt attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure, promises that fell short of the complete ceasefire Trump had first demanded.
(This story is published from a syndicated feed)