i'm sure zelenskyy -- here's the thing. zelenskyy made a comment less than a week ago. the united states has given us [indiscernible] hello? caller: we are here. caller: they have given us $177 billion. i've only seen $77 billion of it. there is a lot of the stuff going on here, not just with the ukraine but with everything. they are not going to get that land back. host: you say they are not going to get it? caller: the one that borders russia, those are a lot of russian people. they are not going to get that land back. i think hegseth might've said that yesterday. host: he said pre-2014 borders are unrealistic. here is what zelenskyy said in response. "i had a long and detailed conversation with president trump. i appreciate his genuine interest in our shared opportunities and how we can bring about real peace together. we discussed many aspects diplomatic, military, economic. president trump informed me about what putin told him. we believe america's strength, together with ukraine and our partners is enough to push russia to peace." john in easton, pennsylvania. cal

president trump said zelenskyy _ assistance. president trump said zelenskyy would - assistance.y would not. assistance. president trump said zelenskyy would not be| said zelenskyy would not be frozen out of the discussions but he did also seem to suggest that they would need to be an election in ukraine. that must be a concern for zelenskyy personally, and for the country as a whole?— as a whole? definitely ukraine at the moment _ as a whole? definitely ukraine at the moment is _ as a whole? definitely ukraine at the moment is a _ as a whole? definitely ukraine at the moment is a country - as a whole? definitely ukraine at the moment is a country of| at the moment is a country of war, with martial law in place, is not in a position to hold war, with martial law in place, is not i had osition to hold war, with martial law in place, is not i had to tion to hold war, with martial law in place, is not i had to flee to hold war, with martial law in place, is not arei to flee to hold war, with martial law in place, is not are in)flee to hold war, with martial law in place, is not are

jd vance met with ukraine's president lorimer zelenskyy on the sidelines. mr.he had fruitful conversations with president zelenskyy after talks that were attended by u.s. secretary of state marco rubio. president zelenskyy made it clear any peace deal must involve real security guarantees for ukraine. president -- vice president vance delivered a speech critical of european leaders. mr. vance avoided questions on ukraine but suggested economic sanctions or military force could be used against russia if it refused to agree to what he called a good peace deal. our diplomatic correspondent this report from munich. correspondent: after a must three years of war, the first face-to-face talks that some hope could lead to the end of the fighting in ukraine. president zelenskyy meeting america's new vice president in munich. >> the goal is as president trump outlined it, we want the war to come to a close. we want the killing to stop. we want to achieve a durable, lasting peace, not the kind of peace that will have eastern europe in conflict years down the road. corres

zelenskyy and told ukraine's president that the u.s. a signal it will stand with his country in the face of russian aggression. they discussed a possible deal in which ukraine would sell rare earth minerals in return for military support. let's talk about this with the president of kyiv's school of economics and former ukrainian economic minister. great to have you back on bbc news. i want to start with what we heard from president trump in the oval office. he was asked about whether he sees ukraine as an equal player in this peace process and he said ukraine has to make peace, referring to the civilians who are dying in ukraine. what did you think of that? >> overall the events of today and the sequence, that first president trump called president putin and only then called president zelenskyy, specific statements about no nato, no troops, it sort of was expected but this is all perceived as sort of not quite a sellout of ukraine but definitely ukraine does not feel to be an equal partner. it feels ukraine is being talked at rather tha

zelenskyy is, of course, under all kinds o pressure. the call between trump and zelenskyy go today? >> reporter: well, zelenskyy described the conversation he had with trump on the phone as meaningful, and he expressed up optimism that the u.s. could help broker a peace deal. he also added that trump shared the details of his conversation with putin. and it is those details that really matter because we don't have insight into under what conditions this war is actually going to end, but we do know that trump mentioned today several times that zelenskyy does face that pressure and could be up for reelection. >> john: weijia, as you suggested in your question in the oval office, it feels like ukraine is getting pushed out of this deal. >> reporter: well, the administration has already said publicly that they do not believe the two things that ukraine really wants, which is to join nato after the war and to overtake some of the land that was annexed by russia, are probably off the table, john, and so that is why democrats are sounding the

zelenskyy decided to start. i am the leader of the opposition.er of the second biggest parliamentary faction. and unfortunately, zelenskyy want to clean up the election field and liquidate his main competitor. this is having nothing to do with the democracy and with the freedom, and i am very much proud that all the civil activists, all the be human rights organization of ukraine, make an absolutely clear message this is illegal. if you have something, please present it and go to the court. if you have nothing, can you imagine that the political leader can make his sole decision and sign the presidential decree attacking his main opponent? and i really want to stress today message of the vice president pence saying that our values should unite us, and freedom and democracy, including the providing the free and democratic election. so, mr. pfizer people and trust by ukrainian by our partners. >> i don't mean to interrupt you, but just i'm thinking about this as you're saying this, the united states, saudi arabia, russia and ukraine are talking. bu

i'm sure zelenskyy -- here's the thing. zelenskyy made a comment less than a week ago. the united states has given us [indiscernible] hello? caller: we are here. caller: they have given us $177 billion. i've only seen $77 billion of it. there is a lot of the stuff going on here, not just with the ukraine but with everything. they are not going to get that land back. host: you say they are not going to get it? caller: the one that borders russia, those are a lot of russian people. they are not going to get that land back. i think hegseth might've said that yesterday. host: he said pre-2014 borders are unrealistic. here is what zelenskyy said in response. "i had a long and detailed conversation with president trump. i appreciate his genuine interest in our shared opportunities and how we can bring about real peace together. we discussed many aspects diplomatic, military, economic. president trump informed me about what putin told him. we believe america's strength, together with ukraine and our partners is enough to push russia to peace." john in easton, pennsylvania. cal

is zelenskyy right to see this as a slight? >> well. >> i. >> think it's a little too much too soon to say that. as we know. president trump met. >> with president zelenskyy twice this autumn. >> they had a couple. >> of phone calls as well at their press conference. together in new york in september. then president, you know, candidate trump said that the first thing he would do is to call putin. and president trump has recognized that the issue here is getting putin to end the war. the ukrainians are ready to end the war. they're ready to negotiate. it's the russians. it's putin who has not been. so what president trump, i think is doing is getting putin to the table. and i do think this is an important step. and even with the phone call that took place, he had prior, he had previously spoken with president zelenskyy a few times and then immediately called him after speaking with president putin. so president zelenskyy is right. you can't negotiate about ukraine without ukraine. but at the same time, i think what president tr

trump also posting he was then going to call ukrainian president zelenskyy, essentially to fill zelenskyy in on these proposed peace talks that will determine the future of ukraine. trump fired off another post, saying that his subsequent call with zelenskyy went, quote, very well. zelenskyy, for his part, said this quote no one wants peace more than ukraine. together with the u.s., we are charting our next steps to stop russian aggression and ensure a lasting, reliable peace. as president trump said, let's get it done, unquote. but of course, what might ukraine have to give up in exchange for peace? a potential preview defense secretary pete hegseth called today in brussels, called a return to the pre 2014 ukraine borders, quote, unrealistic, meaning ukraine will have to cede even more territory to russia for a peace deal. pete hegseth also ruled out nato membership for ukraine. the news of upcoming peace talks comes one day after russia released a wrongfully detained american from russia. marc fogel. and today, by the way, an unnamed american citizen was released from prison in belarus,

what more do we know about the calls with both putin and zelenskyy? >> and he did call zelenskyy shortly after this. we know the call with putin was about 90 minutes. the kremlin told us that obviously there's translation typically part of that. that's why sometimes they're a little bit longer. and the call, according to the ukrainians with zelenskyy, i believe, was clocked in right about an hour. so still a pretty lengthy call between the two of them. and it's kind of a fascinating to watch this dynamic play out between these leaders, because obviously trump has a long history with president putin. we watched it closely in his first term, and with president zelenskyy. he is someone that trump has always been skeptical of and never really has had this warm relationship with him like we've seen with some other world leaders. and so hearing him citing his poll numbers in the oval office tonight when people were asking about president zelenskyy or an election being held in ukraine, those are signs that ukrainians definitely do not want to see here in ter

that conversation with president zelenskyy has already taken place.te house -- here is the white house press secretary. sec. leavitt: the president distance and he got off the phone with president zelenskyy of ukraine. his truth is as follows -- i just spoke two president zelenskyy of ukraine. the conversation went very well. he, like president putin, wants to make peace. we discussed topics having to do with the war, but the mostly being set up on friday in munich where vice president jd vance and secretary of state marco rubio would lead the delegation. i am hopeful that the results of that meeting will be positive. >> all of that just hours after america's new defense secretary outlines the potential shape of the negotiation in brussels. pete hegseth said there will never be u.s. peacekeepers in ukraine and any hope by keys of retrieving that they have left this 2014 is, he said, "uninversion." >> we want, like you, a sovereign and prosperous ukraine. but we must start by recognizing that returning to ukraine's pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic ob

>> european nations had already been talking about providing zelenskyy troops, and zelenskyy has asked for proposed that hundreds of thousands of nato troops enter ukraine to act as a at least a speed bump for russia, trying again. but my understanding is that the white house might be against that, because russia doesn't want nato troops in there. so there's going to be this this tussle over what security guarantees ukraine can get. and zelenskyy also said in an interview yesterday, the u.s. has to be part of the security guarantees or it really doesn't count. >> well, you would also think that ukraine should be part of its peace negotiations. but president trump wouldn't even grant that when he was asked in the oval office, where does that leave ukraine if this is a deal? actually, where does it leave america's european allies? if this is a straight up putin to trump negotiation, will they force something on all the other parties? >> the european allies know that one of the one of the ways in the past that they've changed trump's mind is by appealing to his ego. so they will be appeal

with zelenskyy and putin? >> secretary leavitt: i don't have anything to readout on that for you today peered maggie, good to see you. >> reporter: you talked about the transparency with d.o.g.e. and elon musk's press availability yesterday. there was a conflict of interest law in place that says the people who have personal interests can't interact with government entities that could touch on those. has president trump signed a waiver for elon musk? such a thing exist? if it does, with the release it? in the interest of transparency? >> secretary leavitt: i am not seeing the law you are referring to. what i can tell you is elon musk, as i confirm her for come as a special government employee. he is filing the proper financial disclosures, and he is complying with federal laws. you heard elon musk all addresss directly. the alleged conflict of interest. everything he is doing his public and if you perceive a conflict of interest you are welcome to bring that up. and as the president said, if he feels like elon

and president zelenskyy wants peace. and i want peace. >> jacqui: president trump expressing optimism after long calls with russian president putin and then ukrainian president zelenskyy this morning. in the next breath trump casually indication a reversal of u.s. policy is ahead since the bush administration, the u.s. has supported ukraine's future in nato and the alliance's open door policy. the secretary of defense said today that's unrealistic in a negotiated settlement to end the war. >> i think probably that's true. they have been saying that for a long time that ukraine cannot go into nato. and -- >> -- shouting question] >> trump says no preconditions were set to begin peace talks. the kremlin readout of the call says putin again set a red line on ukraine joining nato. eliminate the root causes of the conflict. zelenskyy not feeding into criticism, the white house put his country at a disadvantage by taking nato membership off the table long considered by kyiv the only way to deter future russian aggression. >> w

i just spoke to president zelenskyy of ukraine. the conversation went very well. he, like president putin, wants to make peace. we discussed a variety of topics having to do with the war, but mostly the meeting that is being set up on friday in munich where vice president j.d. vance and secretary of state marco rubio will lead the delegation. i am hopeful that the results of that meeting will be positive. it is time to stop this ridiculous war where there has been massive and totally unnecessary death and destruction. god bless the people of russia and ukraine. i myself just spoke to the president about these calls and he told me to tell all of you they were very good calls, they were very positive and the administration is wholeheartedly committed to a peace deal to end once and for all the russia-ukraine war. more on that later. i'm sure you'll have more questions to ask. this week the president has continued to deliver on his promises to the american people. according to new polling, that was released at the beginning of this week by cbs news, an overwhelming 7

do you worry that zelenskyy is getting cut out of this? >> well, i think there's no doubt that. >> donald trump wants to negotiate ukraine's. >> future for ukraine. >> listen, i'm all for a diplomatic solution here, but not one that hands the entirety of ukraine to vladimir putin. donald trump has said he doesn't want to spend any more money on this war. and if vladimir putin knows that, that means that he's got the better hand at the negotiating table. ultimately, it's really bad for the united states. if russia owns ukraine, it's very possible russia won't stop and they will invade a nato country. that's american boots on the ground. that's our lives at stake. it also means that china accelerates their plans to try to take over taiwan, and maybe other areas of commercial transit in asia, harming our economy. we benefit from the current world order in which big countries don't get to expand their boundaries through force. and so a bad deal for ukraine is a bad deal for the united states. >> so, you know, as part of this, well, i don't wan

and zelenskyy also has some concerns #.e at the negotiable table talking to putin or is the united states going to do that for me? he doesn't want the united states to do it. he wants to be able to have his own people do it. and he has been giving those assurances as well. there is a lot of negotiation going on before the negotiations has already started in terms of conditions and this public jockeying back and forth is not unusual. and we're seeing some of that play out right before our eyes. i think putin is going to come to the table. we'll see if he comes with some -- conditions that he hasn't met to the president yet. and then likely that would have to get negotiated out. but, meeting with him to go back to your original question, this is personal diplomacy, the president has a lot of confidence in establishing relationships. so that they can make progress in the negotiations. i don't see any problem with it. >> brian: so, general, how strong is vladimir putin's hand? i see some of the stats from the institute study of

president zelenskyy understands the realities on the ground. president putin understands the realities on the ground. president trump as a dealmaker, a negotiator, understands those dynamics as well. by no means is anything i state here, the most powerful military in the word, hemming in the commander in chief and his negotiations to ultimately decide where it goes or does not go. he's got all the cards. the interesting part, oftentimes while the conventional status quo mindset or legacy media wants to play checkers, the same checkers game we've been playing for decades, president trump time and time again finds a way to play chess. as a dealmaker, as a businessman, who understands how to create realities an opportunities where they otherwise may not exist. take, for example, the conversations that our treasury secretary had in kyiv recently with president zelenskyy, which will continue in munich with our vice president and secretary of state, around investments and resources inside ukraine. i don't want to get ahead of any decision or announce

as president trump talks to both putin and zelenskyy. first, the senior national correspondent live in d.c. with the latest on doge. >> good evening. another day and another round of cuts by the department of government if, doge. saving taxpayers a lot of money, while raising new questions tonight. at today's doge subcommittee hearing, a lot of questions like, how did some of these expenditures and up on the books in the first place? and even more questions about the people who oppose looking into it all. >> the whole d.c. swamp is freaking out that the unelected officials from doge were allowed access to the system. that makes no sense. federal judges were not elected. treasury bureaucrats were not elected, and they have failed to fix the problem enabling american taxpayers to be robbed. >> still, democrat lawmakers on capitol hill continue to focus on the man behind the examinations, elon musk, and a lot less on waste, fraud, and abuse. while it is true that congress maintains the power of the purse, once those funds are allocated to t

president zelenskyy wants peace. i want peace. i want to see people stop getting killed. >> reporter: after nearly three years, the war is still raging with russia launching a deadly drone and missile attack on kyiv. today's developments mark a seismic shift for the u.s. from prioritizing weapon shipments to ukraine during the biden administration to now actively negotiating an end to the war. the kremlin even inviting trump to moscow. >> do we expect that he will come here and i will go there and we will meet also probably in saudi arabia the first time. >> reporter: the president swearing in his newly confirmed director of national intelligence. even before negotiations begin, secretary of defense pete hegseth cautioning that ukraine will likely have to give up territory that russia seized when it invaded crimea in 2014. >> returning to ukraine's pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective. >> reporter: did hegseth take ukraine's territorial integrity off the table? >> i haven't done that. i'm backing ukraine. i'm backing ukrai

after a meeting with zelenskyy. and vance noted that nato remains, quote, very important. >> well, jake, it was. >> a. >> week of. >> conflicting messages, no doubt. but one thing is clear here. as we end the fourth week of this trump administration, something that the u.s. has been saying for the last few weeks, the world is now seeing this is a very different administration, obviously, from the biden administration. and the trump administration not only wants to reset relations with the u.s. and russia, it wants to allow russia to take the lead. in many respects on this front. the vice president, introduction to the world in munich. they're talking about the enemy from within. the president was asked a short time ago about that. as you said, he praised the speech. he gave it to very high marks. he had less to say. a reaction to senator wicker's comments that the new defense secretary made a rookie mistake. the president demurred when asked about that. he said he didn't see that necessarily. but the bottom line is

>> so president zelenskyy has had some experience with president trump, and president zelenskyy is a very keen observer of u.s. politics, and he has been very careful to not get into a partisan discussion. president zelenskyy zelenskyy understands that bipartisan support in the united states is very important to him, and he knows that president trump is is going to be very influential in these discussions. so president zelenskyy is playing this carefully and wants to be able to be sure that president trump understands the values that that the ukrainians have, understands the importance of ukrainians winning this war. and president trump wants to be a winner. and so that's, i think, the way that the peace through strength, the winning the war, not being outplayed by by, by putin is going to be a very important message from president zelenskyy. >> do you think he is nervous, given we've heard trump say what ukraine will probably have to give up, but we have not heard what putin will probably have to give up. >> this is why it's so important for what president trump said is so important

i'm sure zelenskyy -- here's the thing. zelenskyy made a comment less than a week ago.he united states has given us [indiscernible] hello? caller: we are here. caller: they have given us $177 billion. i've only seen $77 billion of it. there is a lot of the stuff going on here, not just with the ukraine but with everything. they are not going to get that land back. host: you say they are not going to get it? caller: the one that borders russia, those are a lot of russian people. they are not going to get that land back. i think hegseth might've said that yesterday. host: he said pre-2014 borders are unrealistic. here is what zelenskyy said in response. "i had a long and detailed conversation with president trump. i appreciate his genuine interest in our shared oppounities and how we can bring about real peace together. we discussed many aspects diplomatic, military, economic. president trump informed me about what putin told him. we believe america's strength, together with ukraine and our partners is enough to push russia to peace." john in easton, pennsylvania. caller:

and zelenskyy, of course, is such a major player. fact that president trump has talked to zelenskyy today, that there are, you know, negotiations about to begin, we believe in the coming days that a summit by both countries which moscow and dmitry peskov statement today as acknowledging that president trump has been invited to moscow. didn't didn't say that vladimir putin would be coming to the u.s. but all of this indicates that there is a real possibility of negotiations. and the big question now is how much pressure is going to be placed on zelenskyy, because it's very clear that president trump wants a deal and he is less supportive of ukraine, clearly, than his, you know, it was president biden. and before that, you know, other democrats on the hill. what about the republican congress? yeah. >> what about the different kinds of pressure? i mean, there's there is the obvious pressure that may be coming from the united states, but there's also internal pressure, right? i mean, i think for both sides, this war has gone on much long

president zelenskyy posting on x, together with the u.s.re charting our next steps to stop russian aggression and ensure a lasting reliable piece as president trump said let's get it done said zelenskyy. remember this war started nearly three years ago. it has killed an estimated 100,000 ukrainian troops, 150,000 russian forces although most people that we speak with say that estimate is very low. and includes of course thousands of civilians. all of these discussions happening hours after russia releases marc fogel in a prison swap. another american is about to be freed, three detainees released by belarus. let's bring in adam, the u.s. convoy for hostages. your thoughts on these discussions as we look toward a hopeful and to the war and on these releases of hostages which i know you have worked very hard on. >> it was a major step forward with marc fogel's release. going out under the president orders to get him and you see with these things do. when you have a country take a unilateral step and release a priority of the presidents, that

zelenskyy is saying, yes, i agree. and essentially what it would be, although we don't know the details here either would be some type of access by the united states to those, uh, stores that they have underground in ukraine. a lot of these really valuable minerals that are extremely important to the modern digital economy, you know, like, um, yeah, lithium batteries, things like that. and so that is something i think that trump could actually hang on to as a specific thing that could help the united states get free of china, or at least help to get free china, because china is a country that produces those minerals. >> no question. a stranglehold to some degree on some of these rare earths. jill dougherty, thanks so much. always good to have you on. all right. so we're 55 minutes past the hour. here's your morning roundup. president trump is ordering the treasury to stop making pennies, citing high costs. according to the u.s. mint's annual report, it costs 3.7 pennies to make a penny. that's up 20% from 2023. the ris

the president then speaking with president zelenskyy after. and when asked today if russia and ukraine are equals in this peace effort, president trump said, that's an interesting question. what the president said about the future of ukraine. >>> the images coming in, the u.s. military jet crashing, plunging into the water right near a neighborhood. the pilots rescued by boat. >>> tonight, the u.s. economy, the new report. inflation rising. families paying more for groceries, used cars, medical bills. tonight, president trump, who promised to lower prices on day one, blaming former president biden, and what's being done to bring the prices down. >>> tonight, the senate confirming one of president trump's most controversial nominees, tulsi gabbard, now sworn in tonight as director of national intelligence. and rfk jr. crossing a major hurdle tonight on the eve of his confirmation vote. >>> tonight, the alarming scene. 20 children and adults sickened with carbon monoxide poisoning. >>> two major train derailments. in one of them, 19 cars jumping

maria: did zelenskyy agree with that you get a deal done?today with vice president vance at the munich security conference and i'm confident will get a deal done. maria: one of the rare-earth minerals is titanium which we need for data centers and the power up our own plans for artificial intelligence is not one of the attractive minerals you refer to. >> there's a whole array of strategic minerals that we have and another thing the processing you can have the minerals and a lot of the processing takes place in china so we're going to work on secure processing here in the u.s. or in europe. >> secretary i want to get your take on cutting out waste because of course doge an agency and agency cutting out wasteful spending. are there also opportunities to do this at the treasury? >> i will tell you this character that's been created of doge is by the people who don't want accountability, these are serious people in the going from agency to agency doing an audit looking for best practices. what i've seen at the agency above us is where most of t

president zelenskyy. >> thank you so much. >> thank you. >> very much. very briefly, i think what the president said, everything and absolutely correct. we are very thankful for american support, president trump. we have good conversation today. uh, our first meeting, not last. i'm sure and really, what what we need to to speak more, to work more and to prepare the plan. how to support and finish the work we want. really, we want peace very much. but we need real security guarantees and we will continue, uh, our meetings and our work, and we will be very happy to see general. also, uh, in ukraine and the closest time. thank you. thank you, vice president, for meeting. thank you. colleagues. thank you so much. great. >> thank you all. >> take care guys. >> if ukraine is not ready to come to the table with. >> putin. >> if ukraine is not ready to speak with putin at the table, how do you move forward? will you still negotiate? >> well, look, i think the way that this conversation moves us forward is, first of all, you have great members of the ukrainian de

vance the next security conference and will meet with ukrainian president vladimir at zelenskyy todaytrump a peace deal to end war with russia. and another important meeting happening at home between border czar tom homan and new york city mayor adams. the mayor has given i.c.e. agents a huge boost to help get criminal migrants out of the country. hollywood's trump derangement is back this time over the plan to overhaul the kennedy center. joe concha will be here to react to celebrity outrage. you are watching "fox & friends first" on this friday morning. john carley shimkus and todd has a much needed day off that brooke singman does not have the day off with the latest overseas. >> absolutely good morning vice president j.d. vance at the security conference in germany where leaders around the globe gathering to discuss sharing threats. so j.d. vance kicked up with nato secretary general mark. >> we talk about nato any in particular with the president's desire to see nato spend resources on defense or two i know secretary agrees with me on. we are going to talk, of course ukraine/russ

and president zelenskyy wants peace. and i want peace. just want to see people stop getting killed. >> so, again, the word from the white house and the pentagon is unrealistic for ukraine to retake those borders from before 2014. that area controlled by russia now. the phone calls took place on the same day trump's director of national intelligence was sworn. in tulsi gabbard, no democrats voted for brian, not even bernie sanders, and tulsi gabbard also met with india's prime minister ahead of his meeting with president trump later today at the white house. and here at nato headquarters, guys, the defense secretary peghtd will be addressing the press later. having a press conference, that's a few hours from now, guys? >> brian: one of the messages you got to spend more on defense. on average, nato members, europe mostly, 1.7% of their income. of their g.d.p. i was shocked with the current taken into account russians spend 42%, unsustainable. that's more than all of europe. >> they are on a war time economy now, brian. and as we heard from

putin doesn't want to negotiate with zelenskyy. he wants to negotiate with trump because he thinks he'll get more out of it. and he's absolutely right. >> on your point that you just made about not having ukraine be a nato borders, returning to what they were pre 2014, which he had said was off the table. if if a trump official was here tonight and they argued, well, that's just being realistic. what would you say to that i'd say that if you're going into a negotiation, you don't announce what's acceptable to you before it begins and give away positions. >> i tell you, i've done a lot of negotiation with the russians, and there's no country out there that's better at pocketing concessions that you make and then wanting wanting more. we used to joke in soviet arms control days about a famous russian negotiator who used to greet the americans every morning with a jovial, well, what have you got for me today? and that's what we're hearing from russia. this is something putin prepared the ground for. you know, last week he said he agre

first, by talking directly to president zelenskyy.this morning with a phone call to vladimir putin of russia. if in a lengthy truth social post, he laid out a brand new u.s. strategy to end the war. in his own words, let me quote, i just had a lengthy and highly productive phone call with president vladimir putin of russia. we discussed ukraine, the middle east, energy, artificial intelligence, the power of the dollar and other various subjects. all right. end quote. now, joe biden never spoke to putin since the war began. not once. but trump is clearly making good on his campaign promise to end the war. and he's doing it with his usual warp speed. now, again, in his own words he posted -- and i'm going to quoth agreed, we want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the war with russia-ukraine. president putin even used my very strong campaign motto of common sense. end quote for a moment. common sense has been a constant trump theme. for the economy, for the doge awed a admit of the out of control -- audit of the out of contr

but that's part of negotiations and president zelenskyy said that. secure until there's a security agreement among all the parties that is long-term and sustainable and that's going to depend on the europeans. we understand that. i said that just a minute ago. this is in their backyard many this is in their best interest to do it. that's one of the reasons we're here in munich to talk to the senior leadership, the foreign ministers, the prime ministers, the presidents of the countries to make sure they understand that and they're part of the deal that we're starting to set up, the president's starting to set up. maria: what do you want the european leadership to do? >> own it. what i mean by own it, this is there. this is their backyard. they say okay, we understand where the president's going. we're with the president. when the president of the united states, the leer leader of the e world says go right, you go right, if he says go left, go left. this is the agreements and this is what we'll provide. and that's very important. so when we come out of

. >> my second question is president zelenskyy said today there is a huge risk, the negotiations and conversation about the future of ukraine and europe could turn into bilateral u.s.-russia conversation, and i think it is not a secret that vladimir putin wants to see something like the situation where he says with the american president and they decide on the fate of the whole world. and it feels like the rest of europe will be excluded from this conversation. this became much higher. sec. general rutte: first of all, the next person president trump talk to after he was on the phone with vladimir putin with president zelenskyy. he will have talks with president zelenskyy in munich, so we are closely coordinating between the u.s. and also ukraine and european allies. >> just behind, a blonde woman. >> what are the key challenges in nato's relationship with the member countries in the western balkan, and how does nato plan to strengthen cooperation with these countries? sec. general rutte: obviously we are very much involved in kosovo. we are also closely following and trying to be he