In a bold move to reignite stalled diplomacy, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday, urging him to leverage his recent Middle East ceasefire momentum to halt Russia’s war in Ukraine.
His appeal comes just 24 hours after Russia launched a major strike on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, plunging parts of the southern Odesa region into darkness. Ukrainian officials report at least five civilians killed and widespread power outages after Moscow claimed the sites fuel Kyiv’s military operations.
Diplomatic channels have cooled in recent weeks as international focus shifted to the Israel-Hamas conflict. Trump, who announced a preliminary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Wednesday and met President Vladimir Putin in August, has yet to secure a lasting peace deal in either theater.
“I had a call with U.S. President Donald Trump. A very positive and productive one,” Zelenskyy wrote on Facebook, praising Trump’s Middle East plan as “outstanding.” He added, “If a war can be stopped in one region, then surely other wars can be stopped as well, including the Russian war.”
Eastern Ukrainian tensions spilled across the border, as regional officials in Russia reported two fatalities from Ukrainian drone strikes. Both Kyiv and Moscow accuse each other of undermining negotiation efforts: Russia blames Kyiv and its European allies for the stalemate, while Ukraine and its partners say Moscow is buying time to seize more territory.
With Ukraine’s power grid under attack and international eyes turned elsewhere, Zelenskyy is betting on a high-profile intervention to refocus global attention—and to prove that if one conflict can be paused, others might follow.
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Zelenskyy urges Trump to end Ukraine crisis like in 'the Middle East'
cgtn.com
