President Donald Trump will call Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the "bloody" war with Ukraine after peace talks led to a weekend prisoner exchange.
The call is expected to be at 10 a.m. ET. Trump said he will talk to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO members soon.
"The theme of the call will be to stop 'bloody' from killing more than 5,000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week and conducting trade," Trump said in a post about the Truth Society.
"Hopefully this will be a productive day, there will be a ceasefire, this very violent war, a war that will never happen will end," Trump added. "God bless us all!!!"
Russia bombs Ukraine with drones hours after Trump announces talks with Putin
Donald Trump on the right will call Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the "bloody" war with Ukraine. (Kremlin Press Office/Handout/anadolu agent/Getty image)
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched its largest drone attack on Ukraine several hours in advance, with 273 explosions of drones and baits targeting Kiev, Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk regions, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. Of these, 88 people were intercepted, 128 were lost, and they might be blocked by electronics.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday it had lowered Ukrainian drones 35 times overnight.
Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio also met with Zelenskyy in Rome on Sunday for ongoing peace talks.
On Friday, Russian and Ukrainian officials attended direct talks in Turkey for the first time since the early days of the war.
Initially, I hope Zelenskyy and Putin sit down with each other. The Ukrainian leader said he would participate if Putin showed up. However, after the Kremlin announced that it would send a special envoy, Zelenskyy appointed his defense minister to lead the delegation.
Rubio teases the details of potential Trump, Russia - Putin's face-to-face meeting booth after Ukraine ceasefire
President Donald Trump, who met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Rome last month, said he called Ukrainian leaders after calling Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office through the Associated Press)
The two sides agreed to release about 1,000 prisoners of war in the coming days, "in the coming days," even though they did not reach a peace agreement. Zelenskyy attributed to Putin's breakthrough in sending low-level officials to the talks.
"Everyone can see that the Russian delegation in Istanbul has a very low level. None of them have the people who really make decisions in Russia. Still, I sent our team."
Putin said on Sunday that any peace agreement needs to "eliminate the cause of the crisis" and "keep Russia's security."
Meanwhile, Trump suggests that there will be no peace without him.
On Sunday, May 18, residents stood next to their houses where the Russian drone strike was severely damaged by the Russian drone strike. (Reuters/Valenty's Ogirenko)
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"It won't happen until Putin and I get together, until Putin and I get together," Trump told reporters Thursday.
Ukraine calls for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire. However, Putin suggested that Ukraine might use time to reorganize and mobilize.