Donald Trump failed to make progress on the issue of ending the war in Ukraine during another phone conversation with Vladimir Putin, which he himself reported to journalists.
"It was a rather long conversation. We talked about many things, including Iran, and, as you know, the war with Ukraine. I am not happy with this... I made no progress with him today," Trump told journalists at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington.
At the same time, Trump stated that the US has not completely stopped supplying weapons to Ukraine: "We are giving them weapons (...), and we are working with them, trying to help them." According to Trump, it is not always possible to provide assistance, and the former US President Joe Biden is to blame for this, as he "depleted our own reserves." Now, according to Trump, the US must ensure "that we ourselves have enough weapons."
The day before, Putin and Trump held their sixth phone conversation since January of this year. Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov reported after the conversation that Trump again raised the issue of the need for a speedy cessation of hostilities. In response, according to Ushakov, Putin stated that Russia continues to seek a political-diplomatic resolution to the conflict, but will not retreat from its set goals.