President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that they had a constructive call about moving toward a ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, with the White House suggesting the U.S. could take control of Ukrainian power plants to ensure their security. Trump told Zelenskyy that the U.S could be “very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise,” according to a White House statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz that described the call as “fantastic.” Trump added that “American ownership of those plants could be the best protection for that infrastructure.” Zelenskyy and Trump discussed in general terms the possibility of a ceasefire, according to a senior Ukrainian official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to comment publicly. During the call, there was an emphasis how any ceasefire process would need to be monitored and that the teams still needed to resolve technical issues, said the official, who characterized the call as “a very good conversation, positive, with the jokes.” During the call, Zelenskyy requested additional Patriot defense missile systems. Rubio and Waltz said Trump “agreed to work with him to find what was available, particularly in Europe.” The call came a day after Trump held similar talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. According to the Kremlin, Putin made clear to Trump that there must be a halt to foreign military aide and intelligence sharing as part of any deal. But White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Wednesday underscored that U.S. “intelligence sharing in terms of defense for Ukraine” would continue. Sensitive time for Ukraine Trump’s call with Zelenskyy was about half as long as his call Tuesday, during which Putin agreed not to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure but refused to back a full 30-day ceasefire. In a social media post, Trump said his call with Zelenskyy was to “align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs” as he seeks to bring a halt to fighting. “We are very much on track,” Trump added. Zelenskyy’s call with Trump comes at a fraught moment for Ukraine, as Trump has made clear that quickly ending the war is a top priority for the start of his new administration. The Ukrainian and U.S. leaders had a disastrous Oval Office meeting late last month that led to Trump temporarily pausing intelligence sharing and military aid for Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly complained about the cost of the conflict — the U.S. has sent Ukraine more than $180 billion in military and economic aid since the start of the war. The Kremlin says Kyiv isn’t upholding its end of the bargain Prior to his call with Trump, Zelenskyy said Putin’s limited ceasefire pledge was “very much at odds with reality” following an overnight barrage of drone strikes across the country. “Even last night, after Putin’s conversation with … Trump, when Putin said that he was allegedly giving orders to stop strikes on Ukrainian energy, there were 150 drones launched overnight, including on energy facilities,” Zelenskyy said at a news conference in Helsinki with Finnish President Alexander Stubb. Russia responded by saying it had halted its targeting of Ukraine’s energy facilities and accused Kyiv of attacking equipment near one of its pipelines. “Unfortunately, we see […]