MOSCOW, Russia — Russian President Vladimir Putin has told U.S. President Donald Trump that Moscow is prepared to resume peace talks with Ukraine following the completion of a large-scale prisoner and body exchange programme scheduled to conclude after Sunday, June 22, 2025.
The Kremlin confirmed the conversation on Saturday, June 14, 2025, marking the fifth phone call between the two leaders since Trump’s return to office earlier this year.
The Russian government said both presidents “expressed satisfaction with their personal relations” and held “businesslike” discussions on bilateral and international issues.
“Putin reaffirmed Russia’s readiness to hold new peace talks with Kyiv after June 22,” a Kremlin statement said, adding that the talks would come after the ongoing humanitarian process to return captured soldiers and the bodies of the dead was finalised.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy did not confirm whether his government would participate in the proposed talks, saying only that “the exchanges will be completed and the parties will discuss the next step.”
President Trump’s diplomatic overtures towards Moscow have drawn criticism in both Kyiv and Western capitals, especially as they signal a marked shift from the hardline stance taken by his predecessor, Joe Biden.
The Biden administration had provided robust military and intelligence support to Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
In a statement posted on X, Zelenskyy urged the United States to adopt a firmer stance in its dialogue with Moscow.
“Any signals of reduced aid, or of treating Ukraine and Russia as equals, are deeply unfair. Russia is the aggressor. They started this war. They do not want to end it,” he said.
He also warned that the intensifying Israel-Iran conflict could draw U.S. attention and resources away from Ukraine at a critical moment.
“We would like to see aid to Ukraine not decrease because of this,” he said.
“Last time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.”
Earlier on Saturday, June 14, 2025, Ukrainian and Russian officials oversaw the fourth prisoner exchange in a week, part of a negotiated plan to return 1,000 wounded captives from each side and repatriate the bodies of deceased soldiers.
Photos published by Zelenskyy showed Ukrainian soldiers draped in national flags, some with visible injuries, hugging family and comrades upon arrival.
Russia’s defence ministry also released footage of uniformed men chanting “Glory to Russia” and waving national flags during their return.
Kyiv also said it had received 1,200 unidentified bodies from Moscow, which Russia claimed were Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel.
Ukraine did not specify whether it had returned any bodies to Russia.
The exchanges are the only tangible outcomes from recent rounds of talks in Istanbul and are widely viewed as a humanitarian breakthrough in an otherwise stalled diplomatic landscape.
While diplomatic discussions continue, hostilities remain active along several sections of the front line.
Ukrainian forces reported halting a Russian push in the northeastern region of Sumy, where Moscow seeks to establish a buffer zone to protect its neighbouring Kursk region.
President Zelenskyy claimed Ukrainian troops had retaken a village in the area, adding that reports of Russian troops entering the central Dnipropetrovsk region were false.
According to Kyiv, 53,000 Russian troops have been mobilised for the Sumy offensive.
Despite ongoing backchannel efforts, Russia has so far refused to halt its military campaign.
The Kremlin maintains that Ukraine must cede occupied territory and renounce Western military assistance as preconditions for lasting peace.
Since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022, millions of Ukrainians have been displaced, and numerous cities in the east have been levelled by artillery and airstrikes.
