Trump Tells Putin He Wants Swift End to Ukraine War in Hour-Long Call, Kremlin Says No Deal Reached

Since Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner wrapped their weekend trip to Moscow and Kyiv claiming "substantive progress" without producing a ceasefire or a single date, the next move came Tuesday: a direct phone call between President Trump and President Vladimir Putin.

The call lasted exactly one hour, according to Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yury Ushakov, who described it as "constructive and quite frank." As of Tuesday evening, the White House had not confirmed or characterized the call on its own terms, according to PBS and Al Jazeera.

Ushakov's readout, relayed to reporters, said Trump told Putin he wants "a breakthrough on Ukraine during his presidency" and that ending the war could open the door to "a major restoration of Russia-US relations," a framing first reported by ZeroHedge citing the Kremlin's account. Putin, in turn, told Trump about the battlefield situation and Russia's plans to keep pursuing what Moscow calls its "special military operation," per Ushakov.

Putin's Claim on Europe, and Who Disputes It

Ushakov said Putin used the call to push back on "European narratives about a Russian threat," telling Trump that "we don't have any aggressive plans regarding Europe." That claim runs directly counter to recent statements from European governments. The German government last week blamed Russia for an attempted drone attack loaded with explosives at Leipzig/Halle Airport in August, according to PBS. Hungary separately expelled 10 Russian diplomats on Tuesday over activity its foreign minister called "unacceptable," according to The Independent. Neither government's assessment was addressed in the Kremlin's readout of the call.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also said Tuesday that Russia believes it is "close to winning" on the battlefield, per PBS. Ukrainian and Western observers dispute that, telling PBS that Moscow has been unable to make significant territorial gains recently. U.S. Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby struck a similarly cautious note in an online meeting with allied nations, saying "we must be prepared for a protracted conflict and for Ukraine's requirements to persist in the months and years ahead." This differs notably from the Kremlin's talk of a near-term "breakthrough" and comes from inside the Trump administration itself.

The Fighting Didn't Stop for the Call

The diplomacy came against a backdrop of renewed strikes. Russian attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region killed civilians the same day as the call, though the death toll varies depending on the source: PBS reported seven killed and 28 injured in the Kyiv region, Al Jazeera reported "at least five," and The Independent reported "at least three" dead with 10 injured. Russia said three people were killed and 13 wounded in areas it controls, per PBS. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow tried to "cause as much harm to life as possible" using "ballistic missiles, cruise and anti-ship missiles, and jet-powered 'shaheds.'" A brief truce over the weekend, arranged around the Witkoff-Kushner visit, ended once the envoys left.

Zelenskyy did offer a note of cautious optimism, telling reporters the U.S. envoys presented "very good, worthwhile ideas" and that he hopes to meet Trump around September 20, roughly coinciding with the U.N. General Assembly session in New York. Putin isn't expected to attend that gathering, according to PBS.

The Trump Administration's Framing

ZeroHedge's coverage leans into the Kremlin's characterization of the call as a step toward "restoration of US-Russia ties," reflecting the administration's stated goal of pairing a Ukraine settlement with broader normalization. That is a legitimate read of what Trump himself reportedly told Putin, according to the Kremlin's own account. But no outlet in this set, including ZeroHedge, reports any concrete deliverable from the call: no ceasefire terms, no troop withdrawal framework, no timeline. The only agreement disclosed by either side is that diplomatic contact will "continue."

Meanwhile, the UK announced a £100 million air defense package for Ukraine including Patriot missiles ahead of winter, funded through the PURL initiative in which European nations buy American weapons systems, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said, per The Independent. And Russia signaled openness to India playing a mediating role, with Peskov telling Indian journalists Moscow's position "corresponds" with New Delhi's call for peace, ahead of Putin's planned visit to the BRICS summit in India, according to the Economic Times.

The unresolved question is whether Zelenskyy's proposed Trump meeting around September 20 produces anything more concrete than the Witkoff-Kushner trip or Tuesday's call did. Nothing disclosed so far, from either Washington or Moscow, sets a date for a ceasefire or a peace signing.