Trump on Ukraine deal: “The holdup is two people that hate each other”
Trump said Putin wants a Ukraine deal but blamed the stalled negotiations on personal hatred between Putin and Zelenskyy, keeping defense and energy names in focus.
President Donald Trump said talks to end the war in Ukraine are stalled not because of terms on the table, but because of personal animosity between the two leaders involved. “The holdup is two people that hate each other,” the president said. “I think more than anything else, it’s two people that hate each other.”
What Trump said
Speaking to reporters before departing for a Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, Trump detailed a recent phone call with the Russian leader, expressing optimism about the potential for a diplomatic resolution. He framed Putin as willing to negotiate while pinning the delay on the Putin–Zelenskyy relationship.
“He is wanting to make a deal, and if Zelenskyy is wanting to make a deal, that’d be very nice,” Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One for Dallas.
The diplomatic backdrop
Trump spoke with Putin by phone on Tuesday, shortly after US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner returned from diplomatic meetings in Moscow and Kyiv.
The talks followed rigorous meetings Witkoff and Kushner held with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on September 5, part of a renewed push by the US to bring an end to the Russia-Ukraine war. The White House did not release a summary of the call or confirm that it took place, leaving the Russians to provide the only official account of the conversation.
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A trilateral meeting on the table
Trump described Putin and Zelenskyy as “two people that hate each other” and said a trilateral meeting involving the two leaders “could happen”.
“One thing Steve (Witkoff) and I really thought would be productive is to go back to the trilateral format, which we were able to do about six months ago,” Kushner said in a news conference following the talks in Kyiv, as per CNN.
Why it matters for markets
Any credible progress toward a ceasefire tends to weigh on defense contractors and energy risk premiums, while a breakdown pushes them the other way. Traders reading the tape into a possible trilateral summit should focus on headline sensitivity in oil, natural gas, and European-exposed names.
“Too many people are dying in that war. 25,000 last month,” Trump said. That framing suggests the White House wants a visible push, which keeps geopolitics near the top of the macro tape.
Options market and stocks to watch
Watch for headline-driven moves in the following names:
- LMT — Lockheed Martin, watch for defense multiple compression on any ceasefire progress or expansion on further escalation.
- RTX — RTX, similar setup on missile and air-defense demand tied to Ukraine restocking.
- NOC — Northrop Grumman, watch for beta to broader defense-budget rhetoric.
- XOM — Exxon Mobil, watch for crude reactions to any shift in sanctions or Russian supply expectations.
- USO — Oil ETF, watch for cleaner exposure to the war-risk premium in crude.
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