The latest phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, which took place on April 29, went largely unnoticed in Kyiv. After more than a dozen such contacts, none of which brought peace, Ukraine has stopped viewing them as decisive for the course of the war. This is reported by Glavkom, citing The New York Times.
From Hope to Indifference
For most of 2025, every conversation between Trump and Putin caused alarm in Kyiv. Ukrainian officials worried that the U.S. president, who often panders to his Russian counterpart, could jeopardize Ukraine’s interests. After each call, they urgently sought to learn the details and neutralize any potential negative consequences.
However, the call on April 29—the first of the year—elicited a different reaction. President Zelenskyy noted on social media that he had instructed his team to clarify the details of the conversation, specifically the proposal for a brief ceasefire on May 9. He did not initiate his own conversation with Trump and did not consult with European partners, as he had done previously. The next day, news of the call barely appeared in the Ukrainian media.
“We no longer attach much significance to such calls, as they do not lead to tangible results,” explained Oleksandr Merezhko, chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Policy.
Eleven calls—zero progress
The reason for the shift in sentiment is obvious. Over the past year, there have been eleven conversations between Trump and Putin, yet none of them has contributed to advancing peace…
