Trump Declares Peace: "Phone" Talks and a New Era of Trade

Donald Trump is back in action and, it seems, has decided that peace in Europe will arrive strictly on his schedule and in his own terms. After an insider phone conversation with Vladimir Putin (the tone and spirit of which, according to Trump, were nothing short of divine), the former US president stepped forward as a peacemaker: Ukraine and Russia, he declared, will "immediately begin negotiations" on a ceasefire and ending the war. The details, of course, will remain between the parties—because why should the world need to know the fine print when it has Trump?

In his vision of the future, the countries will enter, if not a Renaissance, then at least an era of unprecedented trade. Russia, Trump assures, will "create a huge number of jobs and wealth," and Ukraine will undoubtedly become "the beneficiary of reconstruction"—after all, what could be better for an economy than rebuilding after a full-scale war? One can only hope the global market doesn't collapse under the weight of such optimism.

Trump’s political phone marathon didn’t stop with just one recipient: the American politician managed to report his success to Zelensky, Ursula von der Leyen, and even Germany’s new chancellor Friedrich Merz. Everyone who picked up the phone got a piece of Trump-style diplomacy. The story, however, is silent on how the interlocutors reacted.

Putin, for his part, didn’t stay on the sidelines and was quick to assure: Russia is ready to work on a memorandum with Ukraine—though with caveats reminiscent of a rental agreement where the landlord keeps a spare key. The Kremlin once again demands that Ukraine withdraw troops from all four regions—otherwise, there will be no truce. Apparently, the Russian delegation is convinced: if you repeat the same thing often enough, it might eventually work.

Experts are at a loss: yet another round of peace initiatives against the backdrop of real fighting and Kremlin ultimatums looks more like diplomatic stand-up than a path to peace. But judging by Trump’s tone, the parties already have everything they need for a new era: a phone, optimism, and unshakeable faith in their own negotiating talents.