On US Independence Day, Trump placed two phone calls that may define the next phase of Europe’s largest war since 1945.
WASHINGTON. On the Fourth of July, while Americans celebrated the nation’s 250th birthday, President Donald Trump spent 90 minutes on the phone with Vladimir Putin. By the time the call ended, Trump had offered to broker a peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv, a diplomatic move that shifts the center of gravity ahead of next week’s NATO summit in Ankara.
The call, which the Kremlin described as “business-like and quite constructive,” was Trump’s first direct contact with Putin since December 2025. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Trump “reaffirmed his readiness to facilitate the earliest possible cessation of hostilities” and made the offer in the context of his participation at the July 7-8 NATO summit in Turkey.
Ushakov said Russia seeks “a political-diplomatic resolution of the conflict, with due account of Russia’s fundamental approach,” a phrase that in Kremlin-speak means Ukrainian territory already seized by Russian forces stays Russian. He accused Kyiv and its European allies of “counting on extending and even escalating the conflict, and on terrorism against civilians,” a reference to Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes on Russian oil infrastructure that have caused fuel shortages across several Russian regions.
Trump also spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later that day. Zelensky described the conversation as “very good” and said Trump confirmed his readiness to work toward a rapid end to the fighting. “There is a real prospect to end this war, and American resolve will have a crucial meaning,” Zelensky said. The two leaders agreed to continue their discussions at the NATO summit in Ankara.
The parallel calls exposed the distance between the two sides. Ushakov said Putin “depicted the real situation on the battlefield where the Russian armed forces are confidently advancing, liberating one locality after another.” On the eve of the call, Russian commanders told Putin they had captured Kostiantynivka, a strategically important city in the Donetsk region that has been a focal point of Moscow’s offensive for months. Ukraine’s General Staff denied the claim on Saturday, saying its forces still control the city. Zelensky called the Russian announcement “just another lie, an attempt to generate some kind of news story.”
The timing of the calls is no accident. The NATO summit in Ankara opens Monday with three core priorities: defense investment, industrial production, and support for Ukraine. Allies have committed to spending 5 percent of GDP on defense by 2035, a target Trump has pushed aggressively. But the summit also comes at a moment of deep transatlantic strain. Trump has blasted NATO allies in recent days, accusing them of freeloading, and his administration has signaled it may review the US troop presence in Europe.
The peace offer casts Trump in the role of mediator, a position that Europeans view with caution. European allies have privately expressed concern that any settlement brokered by Washington could lock in Russian territorial gains and leave Ukraine without meaningful security guarantees. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has said any peace must ensure Putin “never again attempts to invade Ukraine,” but the gap between that objective and what Moscow is willing to accept is vast.
Ushakov left no doubt about Russia’s negotiating posture. “Any solution must include Moscow assuming full control over Ukraine’s Donbas region,” he said. Russia has demanded that Ukraine accept the loss of four regions Moscow claims to have annexed, though it does not fully control any of them. The Kremlin also wants legally binding limits on NATO’s expansion and caps on the size of Ukraine’s military.
Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to continue mediation efforts and may travel to Moscow for further talks. The president’s personal involvement signals he sees Ukraine as a foreign policy win he can claim: a negotiated settlement to a war that has killed hundreds of thousands and destabilized global energy markets.
For Zelensky, the call provides a moment of cautious optimism after months of grinding war and strained relations with Washington. Trump and Zelensky had an up-and-down relationship marked most notably by a heated Oval Office exchange in early 2025. But last month Trump called his Ukrainian counterpart “courageous” and said he was “doing pretty well” against Russia, signaling a thaw.
Whether Trump’s mediation produces a ceasefire or a surrender dressed in diplomatic language depends on what happens in Ankara this week. The NATO summit was already going to be a test of alliance unity. Trump’s 90-minute call with Putin has made it a crossroads.