Trump Again Offers to Help End Russia–Ukraine War, Kremlin Adviser Says

Trump held separate calls with Putin and Zelenskyy during the Fourth of July weekend.

A local resident stands on the balcony of his flat in a residential building damaged by a Russian air attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, on July 3, 2026. Sergei Supinsky / AFP via Getty Images

U.S. President Donald Trump repeated his offer to help end the years-long conflict in Ukraine during a “constructive” 90-minute phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 4.

“The US President reaffirmed his readiness to facilitate an early termination of the hostilities and the search for peaceful solutions to the crisis,” Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov wrote in a statement on July 5.

It is the second time in a month that Trump has spoken with Putin over the phone to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, which Russia launched in February 2022 when it invaded Ukraine.

“The Russian President reaffirmed our commitment to a political and diplomatic settlement of the conflict, with due consideration for Russia’s known principled approaches,” Ushakov wrote.

“No matter how hard the Kyiv regime clings to the remaining fortified areas, our army will definitely take them.”

Ushakov said that White House special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner “will carry on their mediation efforts and are ready to come to Moscow.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he also received a call from Trump over the Independence Day holiday.

“There is a real prospect to put an end to this war, and America’s resolve is decisive,” Zelenskyy wrote in an X post on July 4. “We have agreed to continue these discussions during the NATO Summit in [Ankara, Turkey].”

The White House did not respond by publication time to a request for comment.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a news conference during the Nordic-Baltic Eight prime ministers' meeting in Tallinn, Estonia, on June 9, 2026. Ints Kalnins/Reuters

The phone calls took place days after Russia carried out one of its largest air assaults of the war on July 2, killing at least 21 people, injuring more than 90 others, and damaging about 130 buildings in Kyiv.

Zelenskyy said on July 5 that Russia used 2,200 attack drones against his country during the past week in areas such as Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Kharkiv, Dnipro, and border communities.

Moscow said the strikes targeted military facilities, energy infrastructure, and airports in Kyiv as retaliation for Ukrainian drone attacks inside Russia.

Ushakov accused Ukraine of causing fuel shortages in Russia after the country conducted long-range strikes on Russian targets in the oil industry.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with the country's human rights commissioner at the Kremlin in Moscow, on June 29, 2026. Gavriil Grigorov / POOL / AFP via Getty Images

Trump’s latest offer to help end the war in Ukraine came ahead of his planned attendance at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7 and July 8.

The war in Ukraine will be a major topic of discussion at the NATO summit, according to the agenda posted online.

NATO guests include the foreign ministers of Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, as well as the defense ministers of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea.

Zelenskyy is scheduled to speak at the summit on July 7.

Ukraine is not an official NATO member, but the organization “supports Ukraine’s fundamental right to self-defence and is coordinating the delivery of aid from Allies and partners,” according to its website.

The NATO website states that the organization has provided Ukraine with “unprecedented levels of military assistance, delivering billions of euros worth of equipment, supplies, training and other critical support” since the war started in 2022.

Jackson Richman and Victoria Friedman contributed to this report.