The phone conversation between Putin and Trump and the global reaction. The main thing

On the evening of March 18, the Presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, had a telephone conversation. It lasted more than two hours. During this time, the leaders discussed a wide range of topics, from the Ukrainian settlement and the situation in the Middle East to improving relations between Moscow and Washington. We also talked about hockey. What else did the heads of state talk about, and what reaction followed to the negotiations from other countries, is in the Izvestia article.

About the Ukrainian settlement

• The parties once again confirmed their commitment to a peaceful end to the conflict. Putin and Trump discussed the possibility of a 30-day truce, and the Russian president expressed concern about how the ceasefire would be monitored. In this context, the need to eliminate the root causes of the crisis and Russia's interests in the field of international security were also discussed.

• Russia stressed that a key condition for de-escalation should be the complete cessation of foreign military aid and intelligence information to Ukraine.

Keywords: Putin and Trump agreed to work together on a settlement in Ukraine

In 2.5 hours, the leaders of the two countries also discussed the situation in the Middle East and cooperation in the field of sports.

• Putin agreed to Trump's proposal for a 30-day moratorium on strikes on energy infrastructure facilities. The Russian armed forces immediately received the appropriate command from the President. According to the White House, the parties also discussed the technical aspects of the implementation of the ceasefire in the Black Sea. Negotiations on ensuring the safety of navigation will begin in the Middle East.

• The Russian leader informed his American counterpart that on Wednesday, March 19, Moscow and Kiev will exchange prisoners according to the 175 for 175 formula. As a gesture of goodwill, Russia will also hand over 23 seriously wounded Ukrainian servicemen who are in medical institutions of the Russian Federation.

The Middle East and building relationships

• The parties also discussed issues of ensuring security in the Middle East region, including the Red Sea. They agreed to work together to improve the situation in crisis points and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and agreed that cooperation in the region would help prevent global conflicts in the future. The White House stressed that the leaders agreed that Iran should not be able to destroy Israel.

Entrance course: the Russian Federation will develop a procedure for the return of Western business

But the interests of Russian entrepreneurs will be a priority, Putin said at the RSPP congress.

• Russia and the United States have confirmed their interest in normalizing bilateral relations. They considered a number of areas in which the countries could establish cooperation, including ideas for cooperation in the field of economics and energy.

• Donald Trump supported Vladimir Putin's idea to hold hockey matches in both countries between Russian and American players playing in the KHL and NHL.

Reactions from other countries

• After the phone conversation, Donald Trump called him "very good and productive." He reiterated the need to end the conflict as soon as possible and the assertion that the crisis would not have started if he had been president at that time.

• Later in an interview with Fox News, Trump indicated that he had a "great call" with Vladimir Putin, with whom they discussed moving towards peace and "other things." He confirmed that both the Russian Federation and the United States want to improve bilateral relations.

• President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky stated on the social network X during the conversation between Putin and Trump that Europe should be at the negotiating table. Late in the evening, he said that Ukraine supports the cessation of strikes on energy facilities. He also recalled the Ukrainian position from which his delegation went to Saudi Arabia for talks with the United States: silence in the sky and at sea. Zelensky said that Kiev would support proposals that lead to sustainable peace, but he would like to understand in more detail what is at stake, and hopes to receive the missing information from the American president.

• Following the talks between Russia and the United States, French President Emmanuel Macron issued a belligerent message calling on his country to "prepare for war in order to avoid it."

• German Chancellor Olaf Scholz pointed out the importance of the Russian-American agreements. According to him, the start of technical negotiations on the Black Sea can be an important step towards peace, and called for a complete ceasefire as soon as possible. The leader repeated that "no decisions should be made without Ukraine."

• Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that Moscow and Washington had taken "another big step towards peace" and hoped that Brussels would not interfere with this. The minister stressed that information about the suspension of strikes on energy infrastructure was particularly good news for Hungary, and hoped that both Kiev and Moscow would adhere to this decision.

• Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova noted that Moscow is recording progress in bilateral relations with the United States and Washington's attempts to "recreate from the ruins" contacts between diplomats of the two countries, which Russia is also working towards.