Trump and Putin will discuss the proposed truce between Russia and Ukraine in light of
| Russian President Vladimir Putin is being courted by US President Donald Trump to endorse a 30-day truce. |
US President Donald Trump has announced that he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to discuss ending the conflict in Ukraine. The main topics of discussion are likely to be Kyiv's territorial concessions and management of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
During a Sunday journey back to the Washington, DC, area from Florida, the US president told reporters aboard Air Force One, "We want to see if we can bring that war to an end." "I believe we have a very strong opportunity, but maybe we can't.
"On Tuesday, I will be talking to President Putin. Over the weekend, a lot of work was completed.
Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, said Monday that Putin would talk to Trump over the phone but refrained from commenting on Trump's comments regarding power projects and land concessions.
At a news briefing, he stated, "Yes, this is the case." "A discussion like this is being planned for Tuesday."
As Russia moved closer to expelling Ukrainian forces from their months-old foothold in the western Russian border region of Kursk, and as both sides continued to trade heavy aerial strikes through the weekend, Trump is attempting to gain Putin's support for a proposed 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine accepted last week.
Trump responded, "We will be talking about land," when asked what concessions were being discussed in the ceasefire talks. We will be discussing power plants. We have already discussed the division of some assets.
Although Trump provided no specifics, it seems likely that he was alluding to the largest nuclear plant in Europe, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear complex in Ukraine, which is under Russian occupation. Russia and Ukraine have accused one another of attacks that put the facility at risk of an accident.
Dorsa Jabbari of Al Jazeera, reporting from Moscow, stated that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is anticipated to be one of the primary subjects of conversation.
Early in the fight, in March 2022, Russian forces took control of Europe's largest nuclear facility. Although it has since been shut down, Russian military and Rosatom, the country's official nuclear energy organization, still manage it, she claimed.
Additionally, a temporary ceasefire is suggested. Russia does not want Ukraine to take advantage of the chance to re-arm, reorganize, and re-start the conflict, so it insists that any such agreement must contain security assurances for its side," she continued.
Trump pledged Monday to meet Russian requirements for a 30-day truce, according to French President Emmanuel Macron.
Writing in a post on X, Macron said it was up to Russia to prove that it really wanted peace, and that he had again spoken to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding the matter on Monday.
With "cautious confidence" that a compromise could be achieved to end the three-year conflict, the Kremlin claimed Friday that Putin had sent his ceasefire plan to Trump through US envoy Steve Witkoff, who held discussions in Moscow.
Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Trump's national security advisor Mike Waltz all emphasized in separate appearances on Sunday TV shows in the US that obstacles must be overcome before Russia consents to a ceasefire, let alone a definitive end to the conflict.
Following Kyiv's acceptance of the US plan for a 30-day temporary truce, Zelenskyy stated on Friday that he believed there was a strong chance the Russian war would stop.
But Zelenskyy has repeatedly stated that Russia must give up the territory it has taken and that his nation's sovereignty cannot be compromised. After invading Ukraine in 2022, Russia has taken control of portions of four eastern and southern Ukrainian provinces, including the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014.
Putin said that his actions in Ukraine were intended to defend Russian security from what he portrays as a belligerent and hostile West, specifically NATO's eastward expansion. Russia is engaging in an imperial-style land grab and an unjustified war of aggression, according to Ukraine and its Western allies.
Moscow has insisted that Ukraine abandon its aspirations to join NATO, that Russia maintain sovereignty over all of the Ukrainian territory it has annexed, and that the Ukrainian army's size be kept to a minimum. It also calls for a presidential election in Ukraine, which Kyiv claims is premature while martial law is in effect, and the lifting of Western sanctions.
Kaja Kallas, the head of the European Union's foreign policy, stated on Monday that Moscow's demands for a ceasefire demonstrate their lack of genuine interest in peace.
Defense officials are expected to establish "strong plans" next week, according to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who stated on Saturday that Western allies other than the US were intensifying their preparations to assist Ukraine in the case of a ceasefire with Russia.
Both France and Britain have stated that they would be open to sending a peacekeeping mission to keep an eye on any ceasefire in Ukraine.
In his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday in Paris, newly appointed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also promised to back Ukraine's sovereignty.
As Moscow fired a volley of roughly 200 drones against Ukraine, Ukrainian forces on the front lines unleashed a drone attack on southern Russia overnight, causing an oil refinery to catch fire, local authorities reported Monday.
Before the attack, which caused a massive fire, employees of a "fuel and energy" complex were evacuated, according to Astrakhan Governor Igor Babushkin.
During the attack, one person was hurt. Babushkin posted on social media, "The victim has now been transferred to the hospital."
The most recent barrage coincides with Ukraine's criticism of Russia for rejecting the unconditional ceasefire proposal from the US.
According to the air force, Moscow also launched 174 drones toward Ukraine, of which 90 were shot down by air defense units, including the Iranian-made Shahed drone.
According to Governor Oleg Kiper, the attacks caused over 500 people in the southern Ukrainian district of Odesa to lose power and injured one person. He also stated that many structures, including a preschool, were destroyed.
