WASHINGTON, May 19. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he believes that Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants peace in Ukraine, according to his press pool.
After a bill signing ceremony at the White House’s Rose Garden, Trump "responded briefly to two shouted questions — if he thought Putin wanted peace, and if he thought Pope Leo could help broker it. In both instances, he responded in the affirmative, saying: ‘I do,’" it said. However, Trump’s remarks were not heard during the live broadcast amid the loud orchestra music.
Putin and Trump held a more than two-hour phone call on Monday where they mostly focused om ways to settle the conflict in Ukraine.
Following the call, Putin said that he first of all thanked Trump "for the US’ support in resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine on the possible conclusion of a peace agreement, on the resumption of negotiations that were interrupted by the Ukrainian side, as you know, back in 2022." According to the Russian president, Russia is ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum "addressing possible terms for a future peace agreement, including defining a number of key positions," which would "cover principles for resolving the conflict, timelines for potentially signing a peace agreement, and provisions for a possible temporary ceasefire if relevant agreements are reached." He stressed that the main thing for Russia is to "to eliminate the root causes of this crisis.".