Dan Scavino, Trump's deputy chief of staff, confirmed the US president's conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart had begun.
Zelenskyy earlier Wednesday said Putin’s commitment to a limited ceasefire is “at odds with reality” as Moscow and Kyiv traded accusations over mutual infrastructure attacks.
Just hours prior, Russian and Ukrainian authorities reported overnight attacks on local infrastructure sites, less than 24 hours after Tuesday's call between Putin and Trump in which the Russian leader agreed to a limited ceasefire that would temporarily halt attacks "on all energy and infrastructure.”
Zelenskyy, who had earlier voiced support for the proposal, told a joint press conference in Helsinki that there were attacks from “150 drones overnight, including on energy facilities. There were strikes on transport. Unfortunately, two hospitals were hit, as well as ordinary urban infrastructure."
"Putin's words are very different from reality," he stated.
Kyiv last Tuesday agreed to a far more encompassing 30-day truce, and Trump had sought to have Putin consent to joining that as well, threatening potential economic penalties on Moscow if the Russian leader did not agree.
That did not materialize during Tuesday's discussion, but Trump maintained that negotiations would commence quickly over the wider ceasefire proposal, and a peace deal to fully end the conflict.
The Kremlin, for its part, said it had identified "a number of significant issues" before it would accept a 30-day truce, including what it said is "the need to stop forced mobilization in Ukraine and the rearmament of the Armed Forces of Ukraine."
MNA
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