Trump Promises to End Russia’s Ukraine War, as Putin Warns US of “Damaging Consequences” in Iran Conflict

American President Donald Trump on Wednesday (April 28, 2026) assured Russian President Vladimir Putin of helping to end the war in Ukraine, as the latter warned the US of “damaging consequences” in continuing the conflict with Iran.

Trump and Putin spoke over the phone for nearly one and a half hours, and the two leaders conveyed these messages to each other, hinting at a possible end to both the wars in Europe and West Asia.

However, according to reports on the telephonic conversation, Trump held a hardline stance on Iran’s nuclear programme, while painting a picture of Moscow being ready to pivot towards a peace deal.

Putin, though, expected the “right conditions” to end the Ukraine war, or at least to maintain a permanent cessation of hostilities with Ukraine, while announcing a day-long ceasefire on May 9 to commemorate Victory Day and hold a military parade to mark the World War 2 historic event.

Trump said Putin “suggested a little bit of a ceasefire” and hinted that an official announcement from Moscow was coming soon. The US President also believed that Putin “was ready to make a deal a while ago,” but claimed outside influences had “made it difficult” for the latter to come to the negotiation table.

“I spoke to Vladimir Putin today… I talked about Ukraine, and I talked a little bit about, uh, Iran. I talked about a few different subjects, mostly about Ukraine, and we had a very good conversation. And I think we’re going to come up with a solution relatively quickly, I hope… I think he’d like to see a solution, I can tell you, and that’s good,” Trump said.

The conversation also touched on West Asia, specifically the nuclear capabilities of Iran. In a surprising diplomatic turn, Putin reportedly offered to assist the US regarding Iranian enrichment.

When Putin reportedly offered assistance with other global tensions, Trump remained firm: “Before you help me, I want to end your war.”

“We talked more about the war in Ukraine, but he would like to be of help (in ending the Gulf War). I said, before you help me, I want to end your war… I think he was ready to make a deal a while ago. I think some people made it difficult for him to make a deal…,” said Trump.

In Iran, Trump added, “He (Putin) told me he’d like to be involved with the (nuclear) enrichment (in Iran), if he can help us get it. I said I’d much rather have you be involved with ending the war in Ukraine. To me, that would be more important because we’ve got to have that.”

Trump claimed that Iran’s ability to produce and launch missiles had been severely crippled. “We’re not going to let Iran have a nuclear weapon. And we’ve knocked out their navy, we’ve knocked out their air force, we’ve knocked out their anti-aircraft, everything apparatus, everything they have,” he said.

“Their radar, they have very little left. And they have some missiles, a small percentage. They have a small percentage of missile-making facilities; we knocked out about 80% of them. The rest could come very quickly if we don’t make a deal,” he added.

“We’re not going to let Iran have a nuclear weapon. They know it, and just about everybody else does,” Trump concluded, signalling that while a deal is preferable, the US is prepared to remove the remaining facilities if negotiations fail.

According to the Russian media, Kremlin’s media adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin had a “frank and businesslike” conversation with Trump during the 90-minute call.

During the talks, Putin warned his US counterpart against “damaging consequences” of a new military action in Iran, Ushakov noted.

Putin “highlighted the inevitable and extremely damaging consequences not only for Iran and its neighbours, but also for the entire international community, should the US and Israel resort to military action once again,” he said.

The two leaders discussed Russia’s readiness to declare a ceasefire during Victory Day celebrations, the Ukraine peace process, and tensions surrounding Iran and the Persian Gulf, it said.

This was the 12th conversation Putin and Trump had since the latter became US President for the second time in early 2025. The two leaders agreed to continue the dialogue at multiple levels to advance talks for a resolution of the prolonged Ukraine war.