‘No progress' made in Putin call
During their sixth known phone call this year, the two leaders focused on the implementation of agreements reached by Moscow and Kiev during recent direct talks in Istanbul, according to Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov.
'We had a call. It was a pretty long call. We talked about a lot of things, including Iran,' Trump told journalists before boarding Air Force One on Thursday.
'And we also talked about, as you know, the war with Ukraine. I'm not happy about that,' added the US leader. He has consistently advocated for a negotiated settlement after vowing to end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office – a claim he later admitted was exaggerated.
'No, I didn't make any progress,' Trump said when asked whether the call brought a Ukraine ceasefire any closer.
The Kremlin confirmed that Trump urged the Russian president to cease hostilities in Ukraine 'as soon as possible,' while Putin reaffirmed Moscow's readiness to negotiate.
'Vladimir Putin noted that we are still continuing the search for a political, negotiated solution to the conflict. He informed his counterpart on the progress in implementing the humanitarian agreements' reached in Istanbul, Ushakov said.
'Additionally, the President of Russia said that Russia would strive to achieve its goals — namely, the elimination of the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs, the bitter confrontation that we are seeing now. Russia will not back down from these goals,' the presidential aide added.
Since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, he and Putin have held at least six official phone calls. The discussions have focused on negotiating an end to the Ukraine conflict, arms control, and restoring bilateral relations, which reached an all-time low under the previous US administration.
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