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

Trump said talks with Putin and Zelenskiy showed both sides want a deal, raising hopes for a possible settlement in the Russia-Ukraine war

U.S. 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.