Moscow, May 20
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday described his two-hour-long phone conversation with former US President Donald Trump as "substantive" and "productive," raising fresh hopes for a potential breakthrough in the prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The call, which focused on reviving stalled peace negotiations, marks a significant diplomatic development in the three-year-long war.
"This conversation has effectively taken place and lasted more than two hours. I would like to emphasise that it was both substantive and quite candid. Overall, I believe it was a very productive exchange," Putin told the media following the conversation.
The talks come amid renewed efforts by the United States to facilitate direct negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.
While discussions between the Russian and Ukrainian sides were initially expected to resume through a high-level meeting between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Turkey last week, the Russian leader did not attend. Trump, who was on a tour of West Asia at the time, had signalled he might visit the summit but did not make the trip either.
Putin expressed gratitude to Trump for the United States' support in helping restart direct talks between Russia and Ukraine.
"The President of the United States shared his position on the cessation of hostilities and the prospects for a ceasefire. For my part, I noted that Russia also supports a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine crisis. What we need now is to identify the most effective ways towards achieving peace," he said.