Trump: Russia-Ukraine talks 'very much on track' after Zelenskyy call

 The White House says Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy backed a partial ceasefire in the conflict with Russia during a call with President Donald Trump, in which the U.S. president pitched American ownership of Ukraine's electrical supply and nuclear power plants.

"The two leaders also agreed on a partial ceasefire against energy," she said. "Technical teams will meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to discuss broadening the ceasefire to the Black Sea on the way to a full ceasefire. They agreed this could be the first step toward the full end of the war and ensuring security."

First talk since White House meltdown

Trump and Zelenskyy spoke for the first time since an Oval Office blowup briefly led the U.S. to halt military and intelligence assistance to Kyiv.

In a Wednesday call, the leaders discussed a partial ceasefire in Russia's war against Ukraine that would involve both countries refraining from attacking the other's energy infrastructure, including nuclear power plants and oil refineries.

The White House said Zelenskyy asked for additional help with air defense and Trump agreed to help him to find additional resources, ideally in Europe. They also discussed children who had been abducted from Ukraine during the war.

"President Trump promised to work closely with both parties to help make sure those children were returned home," the statement said.

Trump said he spoke with Zelenskyy for roughly an hour.

"We are very much on track, and I will ask Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, to give an accurate description of the points discussed," he said.

Kyiv previously agreed to a U.S.-proposed 30-day ceasefire with Moscow. Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, instead endorsed a more limited truce during a Tuesday call with Trump.

Trump and Putin spoke for more than 90 minutes Tuesday. The Trump administration said those talks would be followed by additional negotiations in Saudi Arabia to secure an expanded ceasefire and peace agreement three years after Russia invaded its smaller neighbor.

Zelenskyy said Wednesday he wanted to discuss the details of the proposal directly with Trump after Russia launched overnight drone attacks on Ukraine's energy facilities. Russia said that Ukraine also hit an oil depot.

Still, a planned prisoner swap between the nations went ahead, with Russia and Ukraine releasing 175 prisoners each. Russia also released 22 wounded Ukrainian soldiers. Moscow said the United Arab Emirates helped facilitate the prisoner exchange. Trump also met with the UAE's national security adviser at the White House hours after his call with Putin.

Waltz said Wednesday he'd already spoken with his Russian counterpart about a new round of talks.

Zelenskyy: More Russia sanctions needed

Zelenskyy said at a news conference prior to his call with Trump that a verbal commitment from Russia to abide by a ceasefire would not be enough.

He also said he would not accept a peace deal that requires Ukraine to recognize occupied territories as Russian, describing it as a red line in negotiations.

On social media, he pushed for additional sanctions on Russia, saying that Putin had effectively rejected a full ceasefire and the West should respond accordingly.

"It would be right for the world to respond by rejecting any attempts by Putin to prolong the war," Zelenskyy said.

"Sanctions against Russia. Assistance to Ukraine. Strengthening allies in the free world and working toward security guarantees," he said. "And only a real cessation of strikes on civilian infrastructure by Russia, as proof of its willingness to end this war, can bring peace closer."

Trump and Vice President JD Vance savaged Zelenskyy as ungrateful and unwilling to compromise for peace during an televised Oval Office meeting on Feb. 28.

The leaders were not know to have spoken directly to one another since, aside from a letter that Trump said Zelenskyy sent him committing to a U.S.-led peace process. The United States subsequently lifted its pause on intelligence sharing and weapons and threatened Russia with tariffs and sanctions.

Putin has reportedly pushed Trump to recognize areas of Ukraine of that Russia is occupying, including Crimea, as part of its territory. Russia has said repeatedly that the NATO membership Ukraine has sought is nonnegotiable in a peace agreement.