A call from a known number: will Putin and Trump's contacts become permanent
Donald Trump discussed the Ukrainian conflict with Vladimir Putin during a telephone conversation, the New York Post has claimed. However, the press secretary of the Russian president, Dmitriy Peskov, did not confirm or deny the report about the alleged talks on February 9. Meanwhile, in an interview with a US publication, the White House chief spoke again about a potential deal with Kiev on access to rare-earth minerals and gas in Ukraine in exchange for security guarantees in a peace settlement. Meanwhile, Europe has already expressed concerns about Trump's plans. How likely such a deal is and how the conversation between the presidents of Russia and the United States can bring the world closer to the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis - in the material of "Izvestia".
Conversation between Trump and Putin
US President Donald Trump said that he had a telephone conversation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the topic of ending the Ukrainian conflict, writes the New York Post. The publication does not quote Trump directly, but emphasizes that he contacted the Russian president to "try to negotiate an end to the conflict in Ukraine." When asked how many times Trump has spoken with Putin, the White House head allegedly replied, "I'd rather not say."
The Kremlin has not yet confirmed, but also did not deny the information about the phone conversation between the presidents of Russia and the United States.
- What can be said about this news? As the administration in Washington unfolds, there are many different communications, and these communications are conducted through different channels. And, of course, amidst the multiplicity of these communications, I personally may not know something, may not be aware of something. So in this case, I can neither confirm nor deny it," Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Izvestia.
Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov
The New York Post revealed other details of the interview. In particular, Trump said that Putin is not indifferent to the death of soldiers on the battlefield. In addition, the American leader emphasized that he has a concrete plan to end the Ukrainian conflict. He revealed that he wants to make a $500 million deal with Vladimir Zelensky for access to rare earth minerals and gas in Ukraine in exchange for security guarantees in any potential peace settlement. Trump has mentioned a similar intention before. "We expect to make a deal with them ... I want to have guarantees on rare earth metals, and they are ready to provide them," he said on February 3.
It is worth noting that the initiative did not arise from nothing. One of the points of Vladimir Zelensky's so-called victory plan, which he presented to Trump back in October 2024, was a proposal to jointly develop rare earth minerals with the United States.
Rare earth elements are a group of 17 metals, including scandium and yttrium. The U.S. Geological Survey counts 50 minerals of maximum importance for the economy and national security. They include manganese, lithium, titanium, nickel, graphite, beryllium and others.
Anyway, Trump's ambitious plan has not yet found the approval of the parties involved in the conflict. "Apparently, the US president simply took into account Kiev's willingness to let Ukraine go under the hammer and do it for the sake of preserving US military and financial aid and apparently decided to approach this conflict from a commercial point of view," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commented.
She compared the US leader's statement about the US interest in obtaining rare-earth metals from Ukraine to an "aport" command. At the same time, such a commercial approach may not work yet. Many deposits in Ukraine have been developed for quite a long time, and their real value may be overstated given the desire of the Kiev authorities and entrepreneurs to attract foreign investors, political scientist Ivan Loshkarev said.
- If Washington and Kiev ever reach the real process of setting up US production projects in Ukraine, the issue of profitability will definitely become an insurmountable obstacle," the expert told Izvestiya.
In the camp of US allies, Trump's plan was not appreciated either. For example, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that aid to Kiev should be provided without any conditions. In his opinion, it would be "very selfish, very self-centered" to use Ukrainian resources to finance support.
Ukraine is actually "sitting on a gold mine" of rare earth metals - titanium and uranium, HSE analyst Tigran Meloyan told Izvestia.
- Most of such resources are now under Russian control, which Zelensky definitely knows, so there is nothing preventing him from taking such a seemingly desperate step. On the other hand, the U.S. cannot afford to simply bring the conflict to an end and withdraw from Ukraine without getting anything in return for the military and financial assistance provided," he says.
In this regard, such a deal between Kiev and Washington is quite realistic as long as Trump, who is first and foremost a businessman, is in power. It is important for him to multiply American resources, especially against the background of the confrontation with China, which the Republican puts at the forefront of US foreign policy.
But for Ukraine, concluding such an agreement is comparable to agreeing to a slow demise. It would limit Kiev's long-term ability to independently manage its resources and policies, Meloyan says. In addition, there is a risk that the EU countries will follow the U.S. in putting forward their own list of "reimbursements".
On the other hand, Trump's initiative may signal a change in the Republican's position. His entire election campaign and even his first days in the White House were full of promises to end the Ukrainian conflict.
- Earlier, Trump accused Biden of pushing Ukraine to join NATO and expressed sympathy for the victims and destruction. "Now he is not against the conflict and US military aid continuing, but if Ukraine pays for everything," Eduard Lozansky, president of the American University in Moscow, pointed out to Izvestia.
Nevertheless, there are also signs that the talk will eventually turn to a peaceful settlement. In February, the U.S. Senate approved the nominations of Robert Francis Kennedy, Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard to head the U.S. Department of Health and the National Intelligence Agency. Both potential members of Trump's cabinet said that the conflict broke out due to the fault of the American side, Eduard Lozansky noted.
The possibility of resolving the Ukrainian conflict
For now, Trump still has time to find a way to resolve the conflict. According to his own schedule, after his inauguration, he instructed the special envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg to resolve the crisis in 100 days. In early February, the American leader even emphasized that the US had made great progress in this. At the same time, he did not give details and did not specify what exactly it consists in.
Trump has also repeatedly declared his readiness to meet with Vladimir Putin "at any time" when it suits him. But here, too, the White House master's approach raises questions. On the one hand, he emphasizes that, unlike Biden, he has good relations with the Russian president. At the same time, he allows radical measures - tougher sanctions against Russia if it does not agree to a deal on Ukraine.
AFU soldier
Meanwhile, the Kremlin also confirmed its readiness to negotiate on the Ukrainian issue.
- We are also open for dialog with the new U.S. administration on the Ukrainian conflict. The most important thing here is to eliminate the root causes of the crisis, which we have talked about many times. This is the most important thing," Vladimir Putin said on January 20.
On February 9, Zelensky also said that he was ready for talks with Putin in case Europe and the United States "do not abandon" Kiev. It is important to emphasize here that the Russian side is ready to hold a dialog only with the legitimate leadership of Ukraine, which at the moment is, for example, the Verkhovna Rada. Zelensky's presidential mandate expired in May 2024.
The EU is not too enthusiastic about the progress of future negotiations. In early January, they expressed fears that Trump would be determined to negotiate with Putin "over the heads of the Europeans" on the issue of the Ukrainian conflict. On February 9, Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, said that it was time for the EU to take the security and defense of the community into its own hands. The mass media explain that this is how the EU wants to guarantee a seat at the table of any future peace talks on Ukraine.
Tigran Meloyan believes that so far any contacts between Washington and Moscow on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine have been an exchange of views and reconciliation of positions.
- The U.S. and Russia are gradually finding a field for dialog (which was not possible during the Biden administration), in which an important place will be given to the question of what concessions each side is willing to make to end the conflict. At the same time, it is very important to realize that Russia is ready to consider the Ukrainian problem in conjunction with the European and global security architecture, and not in isolation from them," the expert said.
It is likely that the Russian-American discussion, if it reaches the level of public and frank dialog, will touch upon the whole range of strategic issues of concern to Russia. For Washington, it will be important to discuss Russia's strategic partnerships with China, North Korea and Iran, and what risks such partnerships may pose to national security and U.S. interests, the expert emphasizes.
Servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
The Russian side has repeatedly pointed out the conditions for the end of the conflict. These are, in particular, Ukraine's neutral, non-aligned and non-nuclear status, its demilitarization and denazification. Another key condition is official Russian recognition of Crimea, Sevastopol and the new regions of the Russian Federation, which should be fixed in international treaties.
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