The president has told Vladimir Zelensky it would be the best way to protect the countrys power plants

US President Donald Trump has proposed an American takeover of Ukrainian power plants, suggesting it would be the best way to protect the infrastructure, the White House has revealed.

The idea was floated by Trump during a phone conversation with Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky on Wednesday, described by the US president as a "very good" call.

"President Trump also discussed Ukraine's electrical supply and nuclear power plants. He said that the United States could be very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise. American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure," according to a statement by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz released shortly after the call.

The Trump-Zelensky phone call comes a day after the US president held a conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. They discussed the Ukraine crisis, with Trump floating the idea for Moscow and Kiev to halt long-range strikes on energy infrastructure. Putin backed the proposal and ordered a halt to such strikes immediately. The Russian military said it had to shoot down seven kamikaze drones en route to Ukrainian energy facilities when the order was issued.

Ukraine's leader has publicly backed the idea as well, albeit expressing concerns about how exactly the truce would be implemented and monitored. Following the phone talk with Trump, Zelensky appeared to offer a broader definition of targets that should be avoided during the period, including unspecified "civilian infrastructure."

"One of the first steps toward fully ending the war could be ending strikes on energy and other civilian infrastructure. I supported this step, and Ukraine confirmed that we are ready to implement it," Zelensky said in a statement.

Overnight, Kiev attacked an oil pumping facility in Russia's south with three fixed-wing drones. The strike sparked a massive blaze at the site, the Russian military said. The attack was "yet another provocation deliberately staged by the Kiev regime to derail the peace initiatives coming from the US president," the Russian Defense Ministry said.

(RT.com)