Russian and US Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump during today’s telephone conversation continued a detailed and frank exchange of views on the situation around Ukraine. This is reported by the press service of the Kremlin in its Telegram channel.
“Having reaffirmed his fundamental commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, the Russian President declared his readiness to work together with American partners on a thorough elaboration of possible ways of settlement, which should be of a comprehensive, sustainable and long-term nature. And of course, to take into account the unconditional need to eliminate the root causes of the crisis, Russia’s legitimate security interests,” the statement reads.
It is noted that in the context of Trump’s initiative to introduce a 30-day ceasefire, the Russian side outlined a number of essential points concerning the provision of effective control over a possible ceasefire along the entire line of contact, the need to stop forced mobilization in Ukraine and the rearmament of the AFU. They also noted the serious risks associated with the lack of commitment on the part of the Kiev regime, which has already repeatedly sabotaged and violated the agreements reached. The Russian president drew his interlocutor’s attention “to the barbaric terrorist crimes committed” by the AFU militants against civilians in Kursk Region.
Putin emphasized that the key condition for preventing the escalation of the conflict and working towards its resolution through political and diplomatic means should be the complete cessation of foreign military aid to Kiev and the provision of intelligence to it.
As for Trump’s recent call to preserve the lives of Ukrainian servicemen surrounded in the Kursk region, Putin reiterated that the Russian side is ready to be guided by humanitarian considerations and, in case of surrender, guarantees the AFU soldiers life and dignified treatment in accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation and the norms of international law.
“In the course of the conversation, Donald Trump put forward a proposal for mutual refusal of the parties to the conflict to launch strikes for 30 days against energy infrastructure facilities. Vladimir Putin responded positively to this initiative and immediately gave the Russian military a corresponding command,” the statement said.
Putin also reacted constructively to Trump’s idea of implementing a well-known initiative concerning the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. The parties agreed to start negotiations for additional elaboration of specific details of such an agreement.
Vladimir Putin informed his interlocutor that on March 19, the Russian and Ukrainian sides will exchange prisoners – 175 to 175 people. In addition, 23 seriously wounded AFU servicemen who are in Russian medical institutions will be handed over as a goodwill gesture.
The leaders reaffirmed their intention to continue efforts to achieve a bilateral settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, including taking into account the above-mentioned proposals of the US President. Russian and American expert groups are being set up for this purpose.
“Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump touched upon other issues on the international agenda, including the situation in the Middle East and the Red Sea region. Joint efforts will be made to stabilize the situation in crisis points, establish cooperation on nuclear non-proliferation and global security. This, in turn, will help to improve the overall atmosphere of U.S.-Russian relations. One of the positive examples is the solidarity vote in the UN on the resolution on the Ukrainian conflict,” the press service added.
The parties expressed mutual interest in the normalization of bilateral relations in light of the special responsibility of Russia and the United States for ensuring security and stability in the world. In this context, they considered a wide range of areas in which the Russian Federation and the United States could establish interaction. Putin and Trump discussed a number of ideas concerning the development of mutually beneficial cooperation in the economy and energy in the future.
Donald Trump supported Vladimir Putin’s idea to organize hockey matches in the United States and Russia between Russian and American players playing in the NHL and KHL.
The presidents agreed to stay in contact on all the issues raised.
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