Trump says will speak to Putin to end Ukraine 'bloodbath'
The Hindu
Trump plans to speak with Putin to end Ukraine conflict after recent prisoner exchange and failed Istanbul talks.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday (May 18, 2025) he would speak by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the "bloodbath" in Ukraine, a day after the first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in more than three years.
Mr. Trump, who has been pressing Russia to agree on a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, said he would speak with Mr. Putin by phone on Monday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told the State TASS news agency the call was "being prepared".
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Earlier Saturday, the Kremlin had said that a meeting between Mr. Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be possible only after both sides reach an agreement.
That came a day after direct talks between the two countries led to an agreement for another exchange of prisoners.
Early Saturday, a Russian drone attack on a minibus carrying evacuated civilians in Ukraine's eastern Sumy region killed nine people and wounded five, local authorities said.
Mr. Zelenskyy, denouncing the attack and Russia's refusal so far to agree on a ceasefire, repeated his call for fresh sanctions against Moscow.
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