Russian officials and state media took a triumphant tone on Thursday after President Donald Trump jettisoned three years of U.S. policy and announced he would to negotiate a peace deal in the almost three-year-long .

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, said he will not accept any negotiations about Ukraine that do not include his country in the talks. European governments also demanded a seat at the table.

TrumpB次元官网网址檚 change of tack seemed to identify Putin as the only player that matters in ending the fighting and looked set to sideline Zelenskyy, as well as European governments, in any peace negotiations. The Ukrainian leader recently

Putin has been ostracized by the West since RussiaB次元官网网址檚 Feb. 2022 invasion of its neighbor, and in 2023 the International Criminal Court for the Russian leader for war crimes.

TrumpB次元官网网址檚 announcement created a major diplomatic upheaval, one that could herald a watershed moment for Ukraine and Europe.

Russia rejoices at PutinB次元官网网址檚 spotlight role

B次元官网网址淭o us, the position of the current (U.S.) administration is much more appealing,B次元官网网址� Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.

Russian officials and state-backed media appeared triumphant after WednesdayB次元官网网址檚 call between Trump and Putin that lasted more than an hour.

B次元官网网址淭he presidents of Russia and the U.S. have talked at last. This is very important in and of itself,B次元官网网址� the deputy chair of RussiaB次元官网网址檚 National Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said in an online statement.

Senior lawmaker Alexei Pushkov said that the call B次元官网网址渨ill go down in the history of world politics and diplomacy.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淚 am sure that in Kyiv, Brussels, Paris and London they are now reading TrumpB次元官网网址檚 lengthy statement on his conversation with Putin with horror and cannot believe their eyes,B次元官网网址� Pushkov wrote on his messaging app.

RussiaB次元官网网址檚 state news agency RIA Novosti said in an opinion column: B次元官网网址淭he U.S. finally hurt Zelenskyy for real,B次元官网网址� adding that Trump had found B次元官网网址渃ommon groundB次元官网网址� with Putin.

B次元官网网址淭his means that the formula B次元官网网址榥othing about Ukraine without UkraineB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� a sacred cow for Zelenskyy, the European Union and the previous U.S. administration B次元官网网址� no longer exists. Moreover, the opinion of Kyiv and Brussels (the European Union) is of no interest to Trump at all,B次元官网网址� it added.

Russian popular pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda went even further and published a column stating in the headline that B次元官网网址淭rump signed ZelenskyyB次元官网网址檚 death sentence.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淭he myth of Russia as a B次元官网网址榩ariahB次元官网网址� in global politics, carefully inflated by Western propaganda, has burst with a bang,B次元官网网址� the column said.

Zelenskyy wonB次元官网网址檛 accept talks without Ukraine

In his first comments to journalists since Trump held individual calls first with Putin and then Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader said the main thing was to B次元官网网址渘ot allow everything to go according to PutinB次元官网网址檚 plan.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淲e cannot accept it, as an independent country, any agreements (made) without us. I articulate this very clearly to our partners B次元官网网址� any bilateral negotiations about Ukraine, not on other topics, but any bilateral talks about Ukraine without us B次元官网网址� we will not accept,B次元官网网址� Zelenskyy said as he visited a nuclear power plant in western Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said during his conversation with Trump on Wednesday, the U.S. president told him he wanted to speak to both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders at the same time.

B次元官网网址淗e never mentioned in a conversation that Putin and Russia was a priority. We, today, trust these words. For us it is very important to preserve the support of the United States of America,B次元官网网址� Zelenskyy said.

Alarm bells ring in Europe and NATO

Trump appears minded to make a deal over the heads of Ukraine and European governments.

He also effectively dashed UkraineB次元官网网址檚 hopes of becoming part of NATO, which the alliance said less than a year ago was , or getting back the parts of its territory, estimated at close to 20% of the country, captured so far by the Russian army.

The U.S. administrationB次元官网网址檚 approach to a potential settlement is notably close to MoscowB次元官网网址檚 vision of how the war should end. That has within the 32-nation NATO alliance and 27-nation European Union.

Some European governments who fear their countries could also be in the KremlinB次元官网网址檚 crosshairs were alarmed by WashingtonB次元官网网址檚 new course, saying they must be part of negotiations.

B次元官网网址淯kraine, Europe and the United States should work on this together. TOGETHER,B次元官网网址� PolandB次元官网网址檚 Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on social media Wednesday.

Others balked at TrumpB次元官网网址檚 overtures and poured cold water on his upbeat outlook.

B次元官网网址淛ust as Putin has no intention of stopping hostilities even during potential talks, we must maintain Western unity and increase support B次元官网网址� to Ukraine, and political and economic pressure on Russia,B次元官网网址� EstoniaB次元官网网址檚 Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said. B次元官网网址淥ur actions must show that we are not changing course.B次元官网网址�

A Ukrainian soldier is resigned to Trump and Putin talking

A soldier from UkraineB次元官网网址檚 53rd Brigade fighting in the eastern Donetsk region said it was normal for Trump and Putin to speak to each other.

B次元官网网址淚f dialogue is one way to influence the situation, then let them talk B次元官网网址� but let it be meaningful enough for us to feel the results of those talks,B次元官网网址� the soldier said, insisting on anonymity due to security risks for her family in occupied Ukrainian territory.

But she was skeptical about the negotiations, given the incompatible demands tabled in the past by Russia and Ukraine.

B次元官网网址淭he conditions are unacceptable for everyone. What we propose doesnB次元官网网址檛 work for them, and what they propose is unacceptable for us,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 why I, like probably every soldier here, believe this can only be resolved by force.B次元官网网址�

A Ukrainian army officer, who said heB次元官网网址檚 in touch with more than 40 brigades, said the troops he regularly speaks with donB次元官网网址檛 want a peace deal at any price even as they are desperate for more Western military aid.

B次元官网网址淭he stock we currently have, in terms of ammunition, is enough to last two or three weeks, maybe a month,B次元官网网址� he told The Associated Press, asking that his name not be used because he wasnB次元官网网址檛 authorized to speak to the media.

B次元官网网址淲e definitely cannot deal with it on our own,B次元官网网址� he added.