Kremlin reveals new details of Putin-Trump call

Washington could help end the Ukraine conflict by stopping all assistance to Kiev, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov has said Washington could help bring the Ukraine conflict to an end sooner by stopping all assistance to Kiev, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov has said, commenting on the latest phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump.

The two leaders spoke by phone on Tuesday in the wake of a new round of shuttle diplomacy that saw Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visit Moscow and Kiev over the weekend.

The issue came up as the two presidents discussed ways to reach a settlement of the conflict, Ushakov told journalist Pavel Zarubin on Wednesday.

Asked what Washington could do to bring the hostilities to an end sooner, the Kremlin aide said that “first and foremost, [it could] probably stop providing any assistance to Kiev.” The official acknowledged that US assistance to Ukraine had already “ declined significantly ” since Trump returned to the White House, compared with the previous administration, when military aid “ was provided on a massive scale. ” Read more Putin and Trump hold phone talks – Kremlin The two presidents also discussed resuming talks with the Ukrainian side, including in trilateral format that would include the US mediators, Ushakov added.

Trump said he had a “great” conversation with Putin, adding that the Russian president did want “to make a deal.” If Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky “is wanting to make ⁠a deal, that’d be very nice,” he told reporters on Wednesday before boarding Air Force One en route to Dallas for the GOP National Convention.

Moscow has repeatedly said it is ready to settle the Ukraine conflict as long as its root causes are addressed and the realities on the ground are taken into account.

Read more Trump’s Ukraine plans ‘scared Europeans to death’ – Lavrov Russia’s demands include Ukraine abandoning its plans to join NATO and adopting neutral status, accepting restrictions on its armed forces, and formally recognizing Crimea and four other former Ukrainian regions as Russian territory.

Crimea voted to join Russia shortly after the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev.

Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions held similar referendums in September 2022.

Kiev has consistently rejected Moscow’s demands on territorial and security issues, insisting on restoring control over all territories it lays claim to and joining NATO.

Moscow has repeatedly cited Kiev’s aggressive posture, as well as the position of its European backers as major obstacles to a peace settlement.