Two Leaders, Two Hours, No Peace

The phone rang for over two hours between two powerful leaders. The goal? To stop a brutal war. The leaders? The U. S. president and the Russian president. The war? The ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The outcome? No immediate peace, but a promise of future talks. The U. S. president reached out to his Russian counterpart. The conversation was lengthy, but it didn't lead to an immediate ceasefire. This is something Ukraine, the U. S. , and many NATO countries have been pushing for. However, the Russian president didn't agree to stop the fighting right away. The U. S. president shared his thoughts after the call. He mentioned that Russia and Ukraine would start talking about a ceasefire and eventually ending the war. He also talked about the potential for big trade deals between the U. S. and Russia once the fighting stops. The Russian president thanked the U. S. president for his efforts and said they were on the right track to finding peace. The U. S. president didn't just talk to the Russian president. He also spoke with the Ukrainian president and some European leaders right after. The Russian president, meanwhile, was in a southern Russian city. He talked about a possible peace agreement. He mentioned principles for a settlement and the timing for a peace deal. The U. S. president has been busy on the phone, trying to negotiate an end to the war. He even wrote about it on social media, hoping for a "productive day" of calls. The vice president had said before that peace talks were stuck and the U. S. was open to walking away. Before these phone calls, there were direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey. Both sides agreed to exchange prisoners, but they couldn't agree on an immediate ceasefire. The Russian president didn't even show up to these talks, despite calling for them. Since then, Russia has kept up its attacks on Ukraine, with mass drone strikes over the weekend. The White House had said the U. S. president would call the Ukrainian president after his talk with the Russian president. The vice president, meanwhile, was in Italy and told reporters that the Russian president might not know how to end the war. The Russian president, in a TV interview, said Russia had the force and means to meet its military goals. If the U. S. president can't convince the Russian president to stop the fighting, European leaders want him to join them in imposing more sanctions and tariffs on Russia. The Ukrainian president met with the U. S. vice president and secretary of state. He urged them to take a tough stance on Moscow. He said pressure is needed until Russia is ready to stop the war. Analysts in Moscow think the Kremlin believes time and military advantage are on their side. They say Russia can keep fighting, and sanctions aren't hurting them critically. They also say Ukraine might be in a weaker position in a year.