Why Trump's talk with Putin matters in the Ukraine conflicts

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Having long vowed to quickly end the conflict in Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump held phone calls with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday.

"I think we are on the way to getting peace. I think President Putin wants peace, President Zelensky wants peace and I want peace," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after the long talks, adding, "I just want to see people stop getting killed."

Putin invited Trump to Moscow and expressed his readiness to receive American officials in Russia regarding areas of mutual interest, including the Ukrainian conflict settlement, according to the Kremlin.

With the Ukrainian crisis entering its third year, having killed hundreds of thousands of people, the interaction between Trump and Putin is undeniably encouraging.

Ukraine's bid to join NATO has been the core issue of the Russia-West divergence. Established in 1949, the Western military bloc, with its original aim of countering perceived threats from the Soviet Union, continues to expand even after the end of the Cold War.

For the Kremlin, Ukraine joining NATO is no different from a build-up of Western troops on its own doorstep, especially as Article 5 of the NATO Treaty states that "an attack against one ally is considered as an attack against all allies."

However, despite the Kremlin's repeated concerns about NATO's eastward expansion, the Western bloc persisted in keeping Ukraine's membership hope alive. This, unsurprisingly, triggered Russia's military counteractions.

It is worth noting that on the same day of the Trump-Putin phone conversation, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called Ukraine's NATO membership "unrealistic" and suggested Kyiv give up the hope of winning "territories" from Russia.

"To be clear, as part of any security guarantee, there will not be U.S. troops deployed to Ukraine," Hegseth said, adding that Europe "must provide the overwhelming share of future lethal and nonlethal aid to Ukraine."

Washington's stance is close to Moscow's desire – that Ukraine should abandon its NATO ambition and withdraw from the regions Russia deems its territory. This means a greater likelihood of a Moscow-Washington consensus and thus, a peace deal on the Ukrainian crisis.

Trump's remarks – with America first as his motto – have laid bare his attempts to end the conflict in a way that minimizes sacrifices for the United States. But this is not what American allies, who have been calling for more American aid for Ukraine, are happy to hear.

By demanding that the European allies bear more security costs, the Trump administration is apparently shifting its attention from Europe to securing its own interests. After all, extricating the U.S. from other regions' conflicts and maximizing U.S. national interests is the primary consideration for Trump as a pragmatic businessman-turned-politician.

True that Trump rejected freezing Zelensky out of peace conversations despite the concessions to Putin but Wednesday's phone conversations and Hegseth's remarks clearly show that Ukraine's backing from the U.S., which Zelensky has long seen as his major ally, is softening.

With the U.S. shifting its foreign policy focus and Russia showing its goodwill by inviting Trump to Moscow, the new dynamics of Washington-Moscow interactions will impact not only the future of the Ukraine crisis, but also the geopolitical landscape in the region.

Only the future will show if the geopolitical calculations change. For now, Trump's phone conversations with Putin and Zelensky are encouraging for those wanting an immediate peace in the region.

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