The Kremlin neither confirmed nor denied reports of a Trump-Putin conversation.
WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump said he has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone about ending the war in Ukraine.
However, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he could neither confirm nor deny publications about contacts between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump on Ukraine.
“What can be said about this news, as the administration in Washington unfolds its work, many different communications arise. These communications are conducted through different channels. And of course, amid the multiplicity of these communications, I personally may not know something, or be unaware of something. Therefore, in this case, I can neither confirm nor deny it,” the Kremlin official said while replying to a question from TASS news agency.
The New York Post reported that this was the first known direct conversation between Putin and a U.S. president since early 2022. The White House has not commented on the report.
Trump calls Ukraine war bloodbath
Trump, who has vowed to end the war in Ukraine but has yet to publicly outline his plan, described the conflict last week as a “bloodbath” and mentioned that his team had engaged in “some very good talks.”
In an interview aboard Air Force One on Friday Trump told the New York Post that he had “better not say,” when asked how many times he and Putin had spoken. “He (Putin) wants to see people stop dying,” Trump said.
The head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Leonid Slutsky said that work on preparing such contacts is at an advanced stage, TASS news agency reported.
On February 7, the Kremlin Spokesman said that the Kremlin would inform about the progress of organizing contacts as substantive information becomes available.
Trump is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky next week, though no official confirmation has been given.
While Trump has criticised the US’s financial support for Kyiv’s war effort, his administration has yet to announce any policy changes. NATO allies, however, remain cautious about his position, with European leaders warning that a reduction in US support could encourage Russia.
President Trump last month told his Russian counterpart Putin to make a deal to end the Ukraine war “now” or face high levels of taxes, tariffs and sanctions.
“If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries,” Trump said on his Truth Social network.