▲ Donald Trump, U.S. President (left), Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian President, Vladimir Putin, Russian President
U.S. President Donald Trump will hold consecutive phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the 19th local time, raising attention on whether this could break the deadlock in the stalled negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
There is a great deal of interest in whether Trump can bring about change during his call with President Putin, who has conflicted with the international community’s expectations regarding the end of a war that has lasted nearly three years and three months.
This will be the third phone call between Trump and Putin since Trump’s inauguration, based on disclosed calls.
On February 12th, Trump officially initiated mediation diplomacy regarding the end of the war by having consecutive phone calls with Presidents Putin and Zelensky. On March 18th, during a call with President Putin, they agreed on a “30-day pause in energy infrastructure attacks.”
This upcoming call takes place in a situation where Ukraine has agreed to the U.S.’s proposal for a “30-day unconditional ceasefire,” but Russia has not responded, increasing Trump’s “disappointment” in Russia.
President Putin proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine on the 11th, but he rejected President Zelensky’s counter-proposal for a direct summit. Consequently, negotiations between Russia and Ukraine took place in Istanbul on the 16th but did not result in any ceasefire agreement.
A key focus of this call is whether President Trump can prompt President Putin to change his stance on topics such as direct dialogue between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders and an unconditional ceasefire.
Unlike previous calls between Trump and Putin, this communication occurs in an atmosphere where Trump’s pro-Putin, pro-Russia inclination, prominent at the early stages of his mediation efforts, has somewhat diminished.
On February 24th, marking the third anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine, the U.S. surprised the world by voting against a U.N. General Assembly resolution condemning Russia’s invasion, alongside North Korea and Russia.
During the U.S.-Ukraine summit held at the White House on the 28th of the same month, Trump nearly ejected President Zelensky after a heated exchange, suggesting that the U.S. was primarily pushing for Ukrainian concessions for a ceasefire.
However, the attitude of the U.S. began to change when Russia showed a hard-line stance by demanding control over territories it had not occupied in addition to those currently occupied in Ukraine as conditions for ending the war.
On the 26th of last month, after Trump and Zelensky had a one-on-one meeting on the occasion of Pope Francis’s funeral, the U.S. entered into a so-called mineral agreement with Ukraine on the 30th, a moment symbolized by the agreement text stating that the war started due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
President Trump also urged “Vladimir, stop” via social media on the 23rd of last month, shortly after Russia’s massive air assault on Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, and on the 26th hinted at potential financial sanctions against Russia, suggesting Putin does not seem to want the war to end.
Now, nearly three months after President Trump seriously engaged in mediation efforts between Russia and Ukraine, communication between the leaders is happening again in what seems to be a more “balanced” stance between the two countries.
It remains uncertain whether President Putin, who believes the war situation favors him, will make any significant “concessions” during this call.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)