President Donald Trump has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet face-to-face at a peace conference he intends to convene in an effort to end the war in Ukraine, which has now lasted three and a half years, CNN reported.

The plan represents a bold and potentially risky move aimed at resolving the bloody conflict without a prior ceasefire, as Kyiv and Moscow still appear far apart on issues concerning a final agreement.

Trump announced that he has already begun arranging the meeting and noted in a social media post that he discussed the matter with Putin by phone during his meeting with European leaders at the White House. “At the end of the meetings, I called President Putin and began arranging an on-site meeting, which is yet to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelensky,” Trump wrote. “After this meeting takes place, there will be a trilateral meeting – the two presidents and myself. This is a very good early step for a war that has been going on for almost four years.”

Trump did not specify when the first or trilateral meeting will take place. He emphasized that his discussions today focused on security guarantees for Ukraine, which “will be provided by various European countries, in coordination with the United States.”

“Everyone is very happy about the opportunity for PEACE between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump added.

Trump presented the idea for the peace conference during the Oval Office meeting with Zelensky and in conversations with European leaders present alongside the Ukrainian president at the White House. According to European officials, he temporarily paused the meeting with the leaders to hold the conversation with Putin. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. | BGNES