President Trump held back-to-back phone calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the days before the G7 summit opened in Évian, France, according to reports from both the Ukrainian and American sides. The calls were described as focused on ceasefire parameters and the conditions under which formal peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia might begin.

Zelensky confirmed the call with Trump publicly, saying the conversation covered Ukraine’s priorities for the G7 session and the question of what guarantees Ukraine would need before entering any negotiation with Moscow. He has consistently said that security guarantees must precede any peace process, including formal commitments from the United States and European NATO members that Ukraine’s security would be protected regardless of the outcome of negotiations.

The call with Putin was not officially confirmed by the Kremlin but was reported by American officials briefing journalists before the summit. Trump has maintained back-channel contact with the Russian president despite the sustained US military support for Ukraine earlier in the war. The nature of those conversations has been a source of anxiety among European allies who want to be kept informed of any commitments made to Moscow.

At Évian, Ukraine is represented by Zelensky himself, who will attend Tuesday’s session on the war. G7 leaders plan to produce a joint statement reaffirming support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The statement’s language on military commitments and the path to negotiations is being negotiated between delegations ahead of the session.

The United States has suspended direct bilateral military aid to Ukraine since earlier this year, leaving European governments to carry the bulk of the supply effort. Zelensky’s primary ask from the G7 session is a concrete commitment on air defence systems, particularly Patriot batteries, which Ukrainian commanders identify as the gap most affecting their ability to defend major cities against Russian ballistic missile attacks.

Trump has indicated publicly that he wants a negotiated end to the war, though his definition of an acceptable settlement differs significantly from Zelensky’s. American officials have suggested Trump is open to a deal that involves Ukraine accepting some territorial reality, while Zelensky has said Ukraine will not formally cede any territory as part of a peace agreement.

The Kyiv Independent reported that Zelensky described the pre-summit call with Trump as constructive and said the two leaders agreed on the importance of the G7 session for maintaining allied unity on Ukraine. Whether that unity holds when the specific questions of weapons deliveries and negotiating parameters are put on the table at Évian will be one of the summit’s defining moments.