Trump On Ending Ukraine War: The Journey Is Still Long

JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump repeated his desire to end the Russia-Ukraine war, but said there was still a lot to be done.

"We are working on a ceasefire with Russia, and we have had some excellent talks on it. We have received some very good responses," Trump said at the Department of Justice.

"However, we have to see what happens. There is still a long way to go," he said.

Trump's statement comes hours after he made an upload on his US Truth Social account "has had a very good and productive discussion" with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

In his post, Trump said "there is a terrible and deadly war opportunity that will end" and he called on Putin to save the lives of Ukrainian troops under Russian military siege.

"The fighting was extraordinary. Russia has a large group of Ukrainian soldiers as we speak, are trapped and in great danger... I have asked them not to kill the soldiers," Trump said in his speech.

Meanwhile, Putin had previously said he understood Trump's call to consider humanity on the matter.

"In connection with this, I would like to emphasize that if (Ukraine) lays down arms and surrenders, they are guaranteed to stay alive and enforce properly in accordance with international law and the laws of the Russian Federation," Putin said.

Putin on Thursday welcomed the US-backed 30-day ceasefire plan in Ukraine, which Kiev also received, but said any ceasefire should lead to a final settlement that would address the root causes of the conflict.

The Russian president also met with US special envoy Steven Witkoff on the same day.

The US, since Trump's inauguration, has been actively involved in diplomatic efforts to end the war that has been going on for more than three years, engaged in talks with Ukraine and Russia.

"I wanted to stop it... It's not easy. It's difficult, but I think we're going to do it," Trump continued.