Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to “work together” with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump and expressed readiness to negotiate peace in Ukraine in a phone call on Wednesday, the Kremlin confirmed.
Putin and Trump discussed the war in Ukraine and possible peace talks during the 1.5-hour call, the two leaders’ first known discussion since Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Trump “spoke in favor of a swift cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution of the problem,” Peskov said, without providing further details.
Putin “agreed with Trump that a long-term settlement could be reached through peaceful negotiations,” the Kremlin said in its readout of the call, which it said lasted almost one-and-a-half hours.
However, Putin “mentioned the need to address the root causes of the conflict,” the Kremlin said, without elaborating.
The Russian leader also invited Trump to visit Moscow, according to the readout.