Trump says he thinks war in Ukraine will be settled, 'hopefully soon'

ANKARA, Turkey: US President ​Donald Trump said on Tuesday that ​he had spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and he hoped ‌the war ⁠in ⁠Ukraine would soon be settled.

"I had a very good talk with President Putin," Trump said during a meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan at the NATO summit in Turkey.

"We had a ⁠long talk, ‌it lasted a long ​time. ​And I also spoke with ⁠President Zelenskiy right after that. I think ​they both want to make a ​deal. ... I think we're going to get it settled, hopefully soon."


Zelenskiy and Trump are expected to meet at the NATO summit on Wednesday ‌following months of Ukraine's stepped-up attacks on Russia's energy sector, ​and Moscow's ​massive strikes ⁠that killed 50 people in Ukraine's capital in July alone.

Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he ​plans to discuss Ukraine's desperate need for air defense systems to defend against Russia's deadly ballistic strikes.