Summary

Media caption,

White House: Trump, Putin call could lead to meeting in Hungary

  1. Moscow trying to renew dialogue because of Tomahawk threat, Zelensky sayspublished at 20:49 BST

    Some more now from President Zelensky, who has just landed in Washington.

    Moscow is "rushing" to renew dialogue "just upon hearing about Tomahawks" he says in a post on his Telegram account.

    Looking ahead to his meeting with Trump tomorrow, Zelensky says that he hopes that the "momentum" to curb "terror and war" - which "worked well in the Middle East" will help end the war in Ukraine.

    "Putin is certainly not braver than Hamas or any other terrorist" he says, adding that "the language of strength and justice" will work against Russia too.

    • As a reminder, a focus of Zelensky's meeting with Trump tomorrow is his request for Tomahawk missiles from the US, which have a range of 2,500km and would put Moscow in reach of Ukraine.
  2. Volodymyr Zelensky lands in Washingtonpublished at 20:40 BST
    Breaking

    Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has just landed in Washington, ahead of his meeting with US President Trump tomorrow.

    "Already in Washington" he says in a post on social media, alongside a video of him disembarking his plane.

    We'll bring you some more of his comments in just a moment.

  3. Summit preparations under way, after call with Trump - Orbánpublished at 20:36 BST

    Viktor Orban in a blue suit and pink tie stands at a microphoneImage source, Reuters

    "I just got off the phone" with President Trump, says Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a new post on X.

    He says that "preparations for the USA-Russia peace summit are under way".

    "Hungary is the island of PEACE!" he adds.

  4. Here's what we know about the planned Trump-Putin meetingpublished at 20:18 BST

    Freya Scott-Turner
    Live reporter

    If you're just joining us, US President Donald Trump says he's planning to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hungary to discuss an end to the war in Ukraine.

    It came following a 2.5 hour phone call between the pair that also canvassed trade and the supply of American weapons to Ukraine, according to the Kremlin.

    There are still some unanswered questions, so here's what we do and don't know:

    What we know

    • Trump says plans are being made to meet Putin in Budapest, Hungary
    • The phone call was initiated by Russia, lasted for over two hours, and Ukraine's request for Tomahawk missiles was discussed, according to the Kremlin
    • Before any summit involving the two leaders, top diplomats from the US and Russia will meet next week, Trump said

    What we don't know

    • It's still unclear exactly when the Budapest meeting between Trump and Putin could take place
    • The location of the pre-summit meeting between Russian and US officials is also unknown
    • We don't know if any Ukrainian representatives will be invited to the planned Trump-Putin summit

  5. Analysis

    Many questions remain unanswered at White Housepublished at 19:52 BST

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from the White House

    Karoline Leavitt wears a blazer and walks away from a microphone with cameras in the backgroundImage source, Reuters

    Just a short while ago, I wrapped up a short "gaggle" with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in which she was peppered with questions on Trump's call with Putin.

    Her responses, in large part, stuck to what Trump had written on Truth Social.

    There are a number of questions that remain unanswered.

    First among them is the issue of the Tomahawk missiles which Trump has repeatedly teased that he may send Ukraine.

    For now, the White House has so far today kept quiet about the missiles, although the Kremlin says they were discussed in the call.

    We have few details of the call aside from plans for a high-level meeting between US and Russian officials, talks on potential future trade and the possibility of a meeting between the two presidents in Budapest.

    When asked whether Trump believes a future meeting between Zelensky and Putin is still feasible, Leavitt said only that she believes "it is possible".

    She would not, however, be drawn into questions on what conditions Trump believes would need to be in place for that to happen.

    While he may post before then, we're likely to hear more from Trump at 20:00 BST (15:00 ET), when journalists are invited into the Oval Office for an unrelated event that focuses on domestic policy.

  6. Kremlin aid says call with Trump was initiated by Russiapublished at 19:31 BST

    The phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin took place at Russia's request, says a key Kremlin aide.

    In a broadcast on Russian state media, Yuri Ushakov says that during the phone call, Putin told Trump that supplying Tomahawk cruise missiles would harm the peace process and damage Russia-US ties.

    As a reminder, Tomahawk missiles have a range of 2,500 km (1,500 miles), which would put Moscow within reach of Ukraine.

    According to Ushakov, Budapest was suggested as the meeting location by Trump, and Putin immediately agreed.

    He also says US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov will speak by phone initially, and the two countries will quickly prepare for a summit.

  7. High-level Ukrainian figures already in US ahead of Trump talkspublished at 19:16 BST

    Paul Kirby
    Europe digital editor

    Ukrainian offficials on the left meet US officials on the rightImage source, @AndriyYermak/X
    Image caption,

    The head of Ukraine's presidential office posted a picture of his team's meeting with US officials on Thursday

    The fact that Trump is now talking about a meeting of "high-level" US and Russian advisers next week is intriguing, and comes off the back of a series of meetings in Washington DC involving high-level US and Ukrainian officials in the past couple of days.

    With Zelensky due back in the Oval Office tomorrow, a Ukrainian team has already been laying the groundwork, led by the head of his presidential office Andriy Yermak.

    The Ukrainians know this is an important moment after three and a half years of war and Yermak spoke today of "aligning key priorities and focus areas" and hoping for "concrete decisions tomorrow".

    Joining Yermak in the US are Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, national security and defence council chief Rustem Umerov, Ambassador Olga Stefanishyna and Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsya.

    Yesterday, they met Trump's National Security Advisor Marco Rubio, and Yermak said they talked about Trump showing "the kind of vision" for Ukraine that he had for his peace deal in the Middle East. Today they met Trump's Ukraine envoy Gen Keith Kellogg.

  8. Analysis

    No actual sign of movement despite phone callpublished at 19:00 BST

    Sarah Smith
    North America editor

    In his post on social media, Donald Trump said "great progress" had been made during this call, but he didn't outline any.

    There's no actual sign of any movement, but they said that high level diplomats - including Secretary of State Marco Rubio - will meet next week and work together towards the idea of a summit between Putin and Trump in Budapest sometime in the the near future.

    So, it sounds as though he is much more favourable and warm towards Vladimir Putin than he was before this call started, which may not be good news for Volodymyr Zelensky when the pair meet in Washington DC tomorrow.

  9. We are ready for meeting in Budapest, says Hungarian PMpublished at 18:50 BST

    Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has shared his reaction, after Trump announced he would meet Putin in Budapest.

    "The planned meeting between the American and Russian presidents is great news for the peace-loving people of the world" Orbán says in a post on X.

    "We are ready!" he adds.

  10. Trump and Putin spoke for more than two hours - White Housepublished at 18:42 BST

    Media caption,

    White House: Trump, Putin call could lead to meeting in Hungary

    We've just heard from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who says the call between Putin and Trump "lasted more than two hours".

    Speaking to reporters in Washington, Leavitt echoed many of the things Trump said about the call in his Truth Social post, including that it was "good and productive" and that he feels "great progress" was made.

    Discussions will continue when Zelensky visits the White House tomorrow, she says, adding that Trump "deserves great credit" for pursuing peace negotiations so soon after brokering the Gaza ceasefire.

  11. UK and EU try 'very hard' to derail peace - Russiapublished at 18:37 BST

    A man in a black suit in front of a yellow curtainImage source, Reuters

    We can bring you some more comments from Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev.

    In a post on X, he says that the "UK and EU warmongers try very, very hard to derail peace prospects".

    "But dialogue and peace and the US-Russia cooperation will prevail," he adds.

    Russia has long sought to frame Ukraine and the West as the aggressors in the war since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.

  12. Phone call was productive and positive, Putin's special envoy sayspublished at 18:28 BST

    Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev says the call between Russia's President and Donald Trump was "positive and productive".

    He also says the next steps were "clear", posting on X alongside an image of Donald Trump's Truth Social post.

  13. 'I believe great progress was made,' Trump sayspublished at 18:24 BST

    We can bring you some more lines now from Donald Trump's post on Truth Social.

    He says "high level advisors" from both countries will meet next week, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. A location for that meeting is yet to be determined, he adds.

    After that, he says, the two leaders will meet in Budapest, Hungary. He does not say when that meeting will take place.

    He says he'll discuss his conversation with Putin when he meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office tomorrow.

    "I believe great progress was made with today’s telephone conversation," his post concludes.

  14. Trump says he will meet Putin in Hungarypublished at 18:18 BST
    Breaking

    Donald Trump has just posted on Truth Social following his phone call with Vladimir Putin.

    He says the call was "good and productive", adding that "high level advisors" from both countries will meet next week.

    "President Putin and I will then meet in an agreed upon location, Budapest, Hungary, to see if we can bring this 'inglorious' War, between Russia and Ukraine, to an end," he says.

    We'll bring you more on this shortly.

  15. US senators weighing up further Russia sanctionspublished at 18:00 BST

    As we wait to hear what Trump and Putin have discussed, there are reports that members of Congress are considering moving forward with a bipartisan bill on further Russia sanctions.

    The top Senate Republican, John Thune, told reporters moments ago that “the time has come” for a vote on the bill which has been in the works for some time.

    “I think the time’s right… we need to move,” he said.

    Thune said they were working through technical issues with the bill, but were hoping to schedule a vote soon.

    Senators are also reportedly working to arrange a bipartisan meeting with Zelensky when he is in Washington tomorrow.

  16. White House waits for news of Trump-Putin callpublished at 17:52 BST

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from the White House

    Exterior of the White HouseImage source, Bernd Debusmann Jr/BBC News

    After a relatively quiet morning here at the White House, it's suddenly buzzing with activity after Trump's post that he's on a call with Vladimir Putin.

    For days now, Trump has been teasing that he may send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine. These missiles have an extremely long range of approximately over 1,000 miles (1600km), which could, potentially, give Kyiv additional ability to strike deep into Russia and fundamentally alter the war.

    Over the last several weeks, there's been a notable shift in tone from the White House regarding Ukraine. Trump has said he's "disappointed" in Putin, and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed that Moscow could face "costs" for continuing the war.

    And at the UN General Assembly in September, Trump said that he believes that Russia is a "paper tiger" and that Ukraine could ultimately take back the territory it has so far lost - an abrupt U-turn in US policy that caught many by surprise.

    We're still waiting to hear how the conversation with Putin went, and what message Trump conveyed to his Russian counterpart.

    The next update is likely to come from Trump's Truth Social account again.

  17. Trump's changing stance towards war in Ukrainepublished at 17:40 BST

    Trump and Zelensky sit opposite one another mid-speaking. Ukrainian and American flags are behind themImage source, Reuters

    President Trump has long said he wants a swift end to the war in Ukraine, but his stance towards Kyiv and Moscow has shifted throughout the course of his second term in office.

    Earlier this year, the US president said Ukraine would have to consider giving up some territory in order to bring about a ceasefire and eventual peace agreement - a prospect repeatedly rejected by Kyiv.

    During February's disastrous Oval Office encounter between the two leaders which played out before the world's press, Trump said he believed Ukraine did not "hold the cards".

    But towards the end of last month, Trump signalled that Kyiv could "win all of Ukraine back in its original form" with its "original borders from where this war started".

    Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the "big shift" in Trump's position, while the Kremlin suggested a recent conversation between Zelensky and Trump was the reason for the change in tone.

    Trump's attitude to Russia has also hardened in recent months as he has become impatient with Vladimir Putin's lack of cooperation in reaching a ceasefire deal with Kyiv.

  18. Timing of Trump-Putin call significantpublished at 17:26 BST

    Paul Kirby
    Europe digital editor

    Vladimir Putin gestures to an audienceImage source, EPA

    We don't yet know if it was Trump or Putin who initiated today's conversation, but coming on the eve of Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to the White House, it is clearly an important moment.

    Moscow has sent conflicting signals in recent weeks about a talks process with the US, that began with a direct meeting in Alaska between the Russian and American leaders in early August and then appeared to fizzle out.

    From Russia's perspective, Trump is the only leader in the West who's prepared to address the "root causes" of the war in Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov believes Western allies have since sought to "lead Donald Trump astray" by persuading the US president that Putin doesn't want peace.

    But most Western observers agree it didn't take long for Putin to lose faith in the Alaska process. By early September, Putin had resorted to half-hearted offers, including "if Zelensky is ready [to meet], let him come to Moscow". A bit of a non-starter for a Ukrainian leader whose country is under full-scale invasion.

    It's unlikely Putin's maximalist demands to end the war have changed, but Russia is clearly concerned that Trump is now considering handing the Ukrainians long-range Tomahawk missiles that could reach Moscow.

  19. Russia has warned against US sending Tomahawkspublished at 17:13 BST

    A Tomahawk missile launches from a large ship in the still blue seaImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    The long-range Tomahawk missiles would boost Ukraine's ability to strike targets deep inside Russia

    We don't know exactly what Trump and Putin are discussing, but their call comes just days after officials in Moscow raised concerns about the US potentially supplying long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.

    When reporters asked Trump if he would provide Kyiv with Tomahawks on Sunday, he replied: "We'll see... I may." The missiles would be "a new step of aggression" in Ukraine's war with Russia, he added.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the topic of Tomahawks was of "extreme concern" to Russia, adding that "tensions are escalating from all sides".

    He said that if Tomahawks were launched at Russia, Moscow would not be able to tell whether they were carrying nuclear warheads.

    "What should the Russian Federation think? Just how should Russia react?" he said.

  20. Kremlin confirms callpublished at 17:06 BST

    The Kremlin has confirmed that Trump and Putin are currently in conversation with each other, according to Russian state media.

    The pair last held talks in mid-August - days after their summit in Anchorage, Alaska.