Oval Office meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky explodes into shouting match at the White House on February 28, 2025. Photo: VCG.

US President Donald Trump has held what he described as a "very good" hour-long phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, a day after speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Ukrainian President put his support behind President Trump's push for a limited ceasefire with Russia.

The latest calls between the US, Russian and Ukrainian leaders highlight the challenges Washington faces in pursuing even a modest and phased ceasefire, which experts say remains difficult in the near future.

Trump, writing in a Truth Social post, called his conversation with Zelensky as a "very good telephone call" that lasted around an hour. "Much of the discussion was based on the call made yesterday with President Putin in order to align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs. We are very much on track," he wrote.

In a Zoom call with journalists late on Wednesday, Zelensky said he had "felt no pressure" from Trump, adding: "It was a fruitful conversation, perhaps the most fruitful we have had, the mood was positive," the Guardian reported. 

"We have received signals from the US that we are talking about the ceasefire on energy facilities, so not to attack energy infrastructure, and we are also talking about the civilian infrastructure facilities."

This was the first conversation between the US and Ukrainian presidents since their heated exchange at the White House three weeks ago.

During his Tuesday call with Trump, Putin agreed to temporarily halt attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities but rejected a proposed 30-day ceasefire that Trump hoped would be the first step toward a permanent peace deal, Reuters reported.

Following the Trump-Putin call, the Kremlin stated that Putin insisted any resolution to the conflict must include a complete halt to military and intelligence support for Ukraine, per Reuters.

Recognizing that an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire is unattainable now, the US is pursuing a phased approach, hoping it will eventually lead to a broader peace deal, Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times, noting that however, even this path would be full of difficulties.

Minutes after the Trump-Putin call on Tuesday, air raid sirens blared in Kyiv, Ukraine followed by explosions as residents sought shelter, AP reported. 

Possible US ownership of Ukraine's nuclear power plants was also discussed, the White House said, although Zelensky later stated this was only about the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, per the BBC.

To bring both Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table, the US seems like pressing Ukraine to accept a deal while attempting to placate Russia, given Washington holds significant leverage over Kyiv but little influence over Moscow, Cui Hongjian, a professor at the Academy of Regional and Global Governance at Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times. He predicted that the US might well prioritize its own interests over Ukraine's.

In a sign that European leaders are closely watching the discussions between Trump, Putin and Zelensky, the Ukraine president answered a phone call while speaking with reporters on Wednesday evening and promised to call back. Returning to the briefing, he said: "That was President Macron, we have a conversation on average once a day, he's helping a lot. I will call him back," the Guardian reported. 

European Union leaders will commit on Thursday to do more to make the bloc more competitive with more military muscle in the face of US tariffs and other economic challenges, and doubts over Washington's future backing in defense, Reuters reported.

Arms companies from the US, the UK and Turkey will be excluded from a new 150 billion euros of EU defence funding push unless their home countries sign defence and security pacts with Brussels, according to Financial Times.

All leaders, except Hungary's Viktor Orban, are expected to re-affirm their financial and military support to Zelensky, whose video-link address will start the summit.