Latest news with #RussiaUSRelations
France 24
15-07-2025
- Business
- France 24
Trump sours on Putin, but bromance may not be over
With his announcement Monday of new arms for Ukraine via Europe and tariff threats on Russia, Trump's bromance with Putin has hit a new low -- but it may not have run its course. Trump, who had vowed to end the Ukraine war within a day of returning to the White House, said he was "disappointed" in Putin, who has kept attacking Ukraine as if the leaders' telephone conversations "didn't mean anything." "I go home, I tell the first lady, 'You know, I spoke to Vladimir today, we had a wonderful conversation. She said, 'Oh really? Another city was just hit.'" "I don't want to say he's an assassin, but he's a tough guy. It's been proven over the years. He's fooled a lot of people," Trump said. Trump quickly rejected that he was among those fooled and again insisted that the 2022 invasion of Ukraine was the fault of his predecessor Joe Biden, who championed a hard line on Russia. Brandishing his favorite weapon, Trump gave Russia 50 days to comply before facing 100 percent tariffs on countries that purchase from Russia, but stopped short of backing a bill before Congress for up to 500 percent tariffs. Russia's own trade with the United States has slowed down a trickle. Trump had "promised that he could get Putin to the negotiating table, and he has failed to do that," said Heather Conley, a former State Department policymaker on Russia now at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. His tariff threat "shows frustration that he has failed to do it, but I don't see it as a big policy change," she said. The great deal-maker? Trump stunned European allies on February 28 when he publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, telling him he was ungrateful for billions of dollars in weapons under Biden. Trump then briefly held up new military and intelligence. For the US president, a transactional-minded businessman, Putin committed a key offense -- undermining Trump's self-image as a deal-maker. "For six months, President Trump tried to entice Putin to the table. The attacks have gone up, not down," Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally who has led the push for tough new sanctions on Russia, told CBS News show "Face The Nation." "One of the biggest miscalculations Putin has made is to play Trump," Graham said. Yet Trump has repeatedly shown a willingness to trust Putin, despite firm warnings from within the US government. Most famously, he sided with Putin over US intelligence at a 2018 news conference after they met in Helsinki after the Russian president denied meddling to support Trump in his first election. For observers of Putin, the longest-serving leader in Moscow since Stalin, there was never much chance he would accept compromise on Ukraine or work with the West. Putin has rued the demise of Russia's influence with the fall of the Soviet Union as a historic calamity and rejected the idea that Ukraine has its own historical identity. With Russia making small but steady gains on the battlefield and bringing in North Korean troops, Putin has put his entire country on war footing, Conley said. "The Kremlin has thrown everything into this," she said. "President Putin believes that this is just going to be a slow erosion of Ukraine's position and the West's position, and he will win this conflict on its own merits," she said. Mark Montgomery, a retired US rear admiral and Senate policy aide, said Putin believed in what has been referred to as TACO -- Trump Always Chickens Out. Putin "thought he could take it to the limit each time, and he found out he was wrong," said Montgomery, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish research group. "I don't think this stops until Putin feels either weapons system pain or economic pain that he cannot sustain." © 2025 AFP
Al Arabiya
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Putin's envoy: Russia-US dialogue will continue despite attempts to derail it
Constructive dialogue between Russia and the United States will continue despite attempts to derail it, President Vladimir Putin's investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev said on Monday. His comments on Telegram messaging app were posted hours before US President Donald Trump, who expressed frustration with Putin over Russia-Ukraine conflict, is due to make a 'major statement' on Russia.
Russia Today
06-07-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Putin touts historic ‘very friendly' Russia-US ties
Russia has had long periods of amicable relations with the US and supported America at key junctures in its history, President Vladimir Putin has said. In an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin, a clip of which was released on Sunday, Putin offered an upbeat take on Russia's longstanding ties with Washington despite the recent tensions in relations over the Ukraine conflict. 'By the way, as for the Americans, we have had… over a very long period of time, very friendly and special relations with the United States,' Putin said. Putin pointed to Russia's support for the US push to break from British rule during the American Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1783. 'We really supplied them, even supplied weapons, helped with money, and so on.' He also referenced Russia's alignment with the Union during the 1861-1865 American Civil War. 'Later we supported the North during the war between North and South,' Putin said, adding, 'And in this sense, we found something that united us.' The comments come as US President Donald Trump has been seeking to broker an end to the Ukraine conflict. Moscow and Washington have been exploring ways to repair relations that hit historic lows under the previous administration. Despite major periods of rivalry, the history between Russia and the US is dotted with notable moments of partnership. Apart from the instances mentioned by Putin, the two countries engaged in bustling economic cooperation in the 1930s, which helped the Soviet Union to industrialize while aiding US businesses reeling from the Great Depression. The two nations then became wartime allies in World War II, fighting Nazi Germany and coordinating under the Lend-Lease program, which saw Washington make large shipments of arms and supplies to Moscow. While the Cold War ushered in decades of tension, which climaxed during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, the US and Soviet Union still managed to negotiate landmark arms control deals aimed at reducing the threat of nuclear war.
Russia Today
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Kremlin responds to Trump being ‘unhappy' after Putin call
Russia takes all statements from US President Donald Trump seriously, but has a vital interest in achieving its goals in the Ukraine conflict, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. His comments followed Trump's remarks that he was 'unhappy' about the lack of progress toward peace. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump spoke by phone on Thursday in a call that lasted over an hour, covering the Ukraine conflict, the situation around Iran, broader Middle East tensions, and Russia-US cooperation, according to senior Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov. Trump later lamented that he had made 'no progress' in convincing Putin to end the fighting, while the Kremlin noted the leaders discussed the possibility of new direct talks between Moscow and Kiev. Commenting on Trump's remarks, Peskov told reporters on Friday that 'without a doubt, we pay very close attention to all statements by President Trump.' He added that Moscow is 'interested in achieving our goals during the special military operation, and preferably by political and diplomatic means.' 'However, since that is not possible at this stage, we continue our operation,' Peskov stated. According to Ushakov, Putin told Trump that while Russia is ready for negotiations it will not back down from eliminating 'the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs.' The sides, he added, confirmed their interest in a number of promising projects in economy, notably the energy sector and space exploration. Despite Trump's disappointment over Ukraine, Ushakov described the call as 'candid, business-minded, and concrete.' The US president has positioned himself as a key mediator in the Ukraine conflict. He has held at least six official phone calls with Putin, focusing not only on the hostilities but also on restoring Russia-US ties, which deteriorated to an all-time low during the previous US administration. In recent months, Russia and Ukraine also held two rounds of talks. Although no breakthroughs were achieved, a series of prisoner exchanges took place. Moscow continues to insist that Ukraine recognize the new territorial reality on the ground, agree to neutral status, demilitarization, and denazification – demands that Kiev has rejected.
Russia Today
03-07-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Kremlin discloses content of Putin-Trump conversation (FULL STATEMENT)
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, have held a lengthy telephone conversation on Thursday, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov has announced. The two leaders discussed ongoing Ukraine peace talks, the volatile state of affairs in the Middle East, and Russia-US cooperation, he stated. Below is the full text of Ushakov's statement as published on the Kremlin website. Dear colleagues, Another almost hour-long telephone conversation between President of Russia Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and President of the United States Donald Trump has just concluded. Donald Trump began the conversation by announcing that the US Congress passed his administration's flagship bill envisaging reforms in taxation, immigration, and the energy sector. President Trump himself calls it the 'One Big Beautiful Bill'. Vladimir Putin wished Donald Trump success in implementing the changes he envisioned and, naturally, offered greetings for Independence Day, the national day of the United States, which will be celebrated tomorrow. At the same time, it was noted by our side that Russia had played a significant part in the establishment of the United States as a nation, including during the War of Independence, fought 250 years ago, and later during the Civil War, which ended 160 years ago. It was stated that our countries are bound not only by their alliance during World Wars One and Two, but also by deeper historical ties. Incidentally, Vladimir Putin mentioned that just before speaking with Donald Trump, he had a conversation with representatives of Russia's business community. One of the ideas suggested during that meeting was holding an exchange of motion pictures promoting traditional values, which both we and the Trump administration hold dear. President Trump reacted immediately and said he liked this idea. There was a detailed discussion of the situation surrounding Iran, and the state of affairs in the Middle East in general. The Russian side emphasized it was crucial to settle any and all contentious issues, differences, and conflicts exclusively via political and diplomatic means. The two leaders agreed to maintain contact on the issue between the respective foreign services, defense ministries, and presidential aides. The latest developments in Syria were addressed as well. Similarly, the Russian and US sides intend to continue the dialogue on the matter. Naturally, the issues surrounding Ukraine were also discussed. Donald Trump has once again raised the issue of ending the hostilities as soon as possible. In turn, Vladimir Putin noted that we still continued the search for a political, negotiated solution to the conflict. He informed his counterpart on the progress in implementing the humanitarian agreements reached during the second round of direct Russian-Ukrainian talks held in Istanbul. He also noted Russia was willing to pursue negotiations. 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. While exchanging views on bilateral matters, the two sides confirmed their mutual interest in implementing a number of promising projects in economy, notably the energy sector and space exploration. Overall, I would like to point out that the conversation between the two presidents has, as always, shown that they are on the same page. It was candid, business-minded, and concrete. The two presidents will naturally continue communicating and will have another conversation soon. Thank you.
