Trump says he had “great conversation” with Putin, but Putin and Zelenskyy “hate each other”

Washington — President Trump on Wednesday said he had a “great conversation” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, repeating his claim that he thinks the Russian leader wants to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine.

The phone call, which the Russians said took place Tuesday, came after top Trump envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow and with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv over the weekend. 

“We had a great conversation,” Mr. Trump said Wednesday on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. “He is wanting to make a deal. And if Zelenskyy is wanting to make a deal, that would be very nice.”

Mr. Trump has repeatedly said he thinks Putin wants to strike a deal to end the fighting, although the Russians could remove troops and relinquish territory at any point. A reporter asked the president what the holdup is.  

“The holdup is two people that hate each other,” the president said. “I think more than anything else, it’s two people that hate each other.” 

The White House did not release a summary of the call or confirm that it took place, leaving the Russians to provide the only official account of the conversation.

According to the Russian readout, Mr. Trump told Putin that ending the conflict would immediately open up the possibility for the full restoration of Russia-U.S. relations, and that he’s interested in reaching a breakthrough in resolving the conflict during his presidency. 

Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, told reporters Sunday that Mr. Trump has been following developments from their meetings “very closely” and is trying to “find a pathway to end this war.” It was the first time Kushner and Witkoff visited Ukraine since Mr. Trump took office in January 2025. Zelenskyy said the goal of the discussions was a “just, fair peace” that would make sure Russia never had a chance to resume its attacks on Ukraine. The Ukrainian leader said Tuesday that he may meet with Mr. Trump later this month. 

Putin and Zelenskyy ordered a pause in fighting while Kushner and Witkoff held their talks in both countries. But Russia resumed its attacks on Kyiv on Tuesday morning, killing at least two people. 

The conversations come as Lithuania, which borders Russia-friendly Belarus, trains civilians to stand up to Russian aggression, should it arrive at their doorstep. 

Mr. Trump pledged to end the war in Ukraine by his first day in office, but he has admitted publicly that achieving that goal has been more challenging than anticipated, and said the pledge was “figurative” or an “exaggeration.” He is approaching 20 months in office.