Moscow. 18th of March. INTERFAX - Russian President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump, the Kremlin's press service reported.
The full text of the press service's message follows.:
"The leaders continued a detailed and frank exchange of views on the situation around Ukraine. Vladimir Putin expressed gratitude to Donald Trump for his desire to contribute to the achievement of the noble goal of ending hostilities and human losses.
Reaffirming his principled commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, the Russian President expressed his readiness to work with American partners to thoroughly explore possible ways to resolve the conflict, which should be comprehensive, sustainable and long-term. And, of course, take into account the absolute need to eliminate the root causes of the crisis and Russia's legitimate security interests.
In the context of the US President's initiative to introduce a 30-day truce, the Russian side has identified a number of significant issues related to ensuring effective control over a possible ceasefire along the entire line of contact, the need to stop forced mobilization in Ukraine and the rearmament of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The serious risks associated with the incompetence of the Kiev regime, which has repeatedly sabotaged and violated the agreements reached, were also noted. Attention is drawn to the barbaric terrorist crimes committed by Ukrainian militants against the civilian population of the Kursk region.
It was emphasized that the key condition for preventing the escalation of the conflict and working towards its resolution through political and diplomatic means should be the complete cessation of foreign military assistance and the provision of intelligence information to Kiev.
In connection with Donald Trump's recent appeal to save the lives of Ukrainian servicemen surrounded in the Kursk region, Vladimir Putin confirmed that the Russian side is ready to be guided by humanitarian considerations and, in case of surrender, guarantees the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine life and decent treatment in accordance with Russian laws and international law.
During the conversation, Donald Trump put forward a proposal on the mutual refusal of the parties to the conflict from strikes on energy infrastructure facilities for 30 days. Vladimir Putin responded positively to this initiative and immediately gave the Russian military the appropriate command.
The Russian President also reacted constructively to the idea expressed by Donald Trump of implementing a well-known initiative concerning the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. It was agreed to start negotiations for additional elaboration of specific details of such an agreement.
Vladimir Putin informed that on March 19, 175 prisoners will be exchanged between the Russian and Ukrainian sides for 175 people. In addition, as a gesture of goodwill, 23 seriously wounded Ukrainian servicemen who are being treated in Russian medical institutions will be transferred.
The leaders confirmed their intention to continue efforts to achieve a bilateral settlement in Ukraine, including taking into account the aforementioned proposals of the US President. For this purpose, Russian and American expert groups are being created.
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump also touched upon other issues on the international agenda, including the situation in the Middle East and the Red Sea region. Joint efforts will be made to stabilize the situation in crisis points, establish cooperation on nuclear nonproliferation and global security issues. This, in turn, will contribute to improving the overall atmosphere of Russian-American relations. One of the positive examples is the United Nations solidarity vote on a resolution on the Ukrainian conflict.
They expressed mutual interest in normalizing bilateral relations in the light of the special responsibility of Russia and the United States for ensuring security and stability in the world. In this context, we considered a wide range of areas in which our countries could establish cooperation. A number of ideas were discussed in the direction of developing mutually beneficial cooperation in the economy and energy sector in the future.
Donald Trump supported Vladimir Putin's idea to organize hockey matches in the United States and Russia between Russian and American players playing in the NHL and KHL.
