Zelensky calls for ceasefire along current front lines

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has called for a ceasefire with Russia along the current front lines. He made the comment after US President Donald Trump issued a similar appeal on social media.

“We have to stop where we are. The president is right,” Zelensky told reporters in Washington, DC on Friday, adding that the sides could then hammer out the next steps toward a peace deal. “Yes, both sides have to stop,” Zelensky said.

Trump hosted Zelensky at the White House earlier that day, following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday. He previously expressed frustration over the lack of progress in his efforts to mediate peace between Russia and Ukraine.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that he urged Putin and Zelensky to “stop the killing, and make a DEAL!”

“Enough blood has been shed, with property lines being defined by War and Guts. They should stop where they are. Let both claim Victory, let History decide! No more shooting, no more Death, no more vast and unsustainable sums of money spent,” he said.

Moscow has said that for a ceasefire to work, Ukraine must withdraw from the parts of Russian regions that it controls, and the West must end military aid to Kiev. Putin has also demanded that Ukraine recognize Russia’s new borders and abandon its plans to join NATO.