US President Donald Trump disclosed on Wednesday that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned that he would retaliate against the recent shocking drone attack by Ukraine on Russian soil, which is the clearest signal so far that the US president’s peace efforts have stalled.
Trump said that after the two had a phone conversation, he posted on his Truth Social platform, but did not mention further sanctions, nor did he mention his repeated calls for a ceasefire (which Putin ignored), nor did he mention the possibility of a meeting between the two leaders (Ukrainian President Zelensky expressed support).
“It was a very good conversation, but it’s not going to lead to peace immediately,” Trump said of the call, which lasted about 1 hour and 15 minutes. “President Putin did say, and very strongly, that he has to respond to the recent attack on the airport.”
During his campaign, Trump emphasized a swift end to the war in Ukraine and claimed to have a good relationship with Putin. However, he also threatened to withdraw if the two sides failed to reach an agreement. His intention to stay away from peace talks and post-war security affairs has also shocked European allies.
Ukraine has launched a series of bold attacks on Russian targets, including the use of drones hidden in trucks to strike airports in Siberia and other places over the weekend, which is an embarrassing setback for the Kremlin.
The Kremlin’s account of Wednesday’s call made no mention of possible retaliation but stressed Moscow’s hope that the two sides could continue their dialogue. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov also said that Trump told Putin that he had not been informed in advance of the operation.
Earlier that day, Putin rejected Zelensky’s proposal for direct high-level talks in a speech, but he did not mention the air base attack in his remarks.
In such circumstances, how could such talks be held? What is there to talk about? Putin said at a televised meeting with government officials, and pointed out that multiple bridge attack incidents were carried out by Ukraine.
Russian and Ukrainian officials held their second publicly announced meeting in Istanbul on Monday, exchanged documents through Turkish intermediaries and plan to meet again later this month. The two sides also agreed to work towards a new prisoner exchange deal.
However, Zelensky said on Wednesday that such negotiations had not produced any results and emphasized that he was willing to hold direct talks with Putin.
Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv: “I think it is meaningless to continue diplomatic talks in Istanbul that cannot solve any problems.” He called Russia’s peace conditions an “ultimatum”.
He proposed a ceasefire until a meeting of the leaders was held at a location chosen by Russia, including Istanbul, the Vatican or Switzerland. The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Putin also spoke to Pope Leo XIV about his desire “to achieve peace through political and diplomatic means”. A statement from the Vatican said that during the call, “the Pope called on Russia to make gestures conducive to peace”.
In Washington, Andriy Yermak, the chief of staff of Volodymyr Zelensky, said he met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss the Istanbul talks and “the further negotiation process.”
Special Envoy for Sanctions Vladislav Frlachuk told reporters at another press conference in Washington that a sanctions bill that has received broad bipartisan support in the Senate would cost Russia about $60 billion in oil revenue. He said this is roughly equivalent to Moscow’s annual war spending. It is not yet clear whether Trump will support the bill. The bill’s main sponsors, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, said they hope the bill will be passed before the G7 leaders’ meeting in Canada later this month.
Trump also said that Russia might play a role in negotiations with Iran, another focus where the US president has struggled to produce results, while threatening unspecified consequences for Tehran.
President Trump said, “President Putin indicated that he would be involved in discussions with Iran and perhaps could help to quickly resolve the issue. I think Iran has been dragging its feet on this very important matter and we need a clear answer in a very short period of time!”
At the same time, the Kremlin’s commitment to the Iran issue is even less. After the call, it said that Trump indicated that he believed Russia could offer help and he would be grateful for that.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei earlier criticized the nuclear deal proposed by the United States and said that US officials “arrogantly” expected the Islamic Republic of Iran to stop uranium enrichment.
Iran and the United States have been in talks since April, attempting to end the years-long stalemate over Tehran’s nuclear program. So far, five rounds of negotiations have been held under the mediation of Oman.
