Kremlin: Putin Rejected Peace Talks in Call With Trump and Expects Ukraine to Capitulate

Yuri Ushakov, an aide to the Russian president, has said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin turned down the possibility of peace talks on the war in Ukraine during a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump. The report was published by the Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda, citing the Kremlin official's statement.

What the Kremlin said

According to Ushakov's account, Putin not only dismissed the idea of peace negotiations but also stressed that Russia would continue hostilities. The Kremlin aide said this would go on until Ukraine capitulates. In effect, Moscow is presenting Ukraine's surrender, rather than negotiations, as its condition.

Why it matters

The statement bears on the question of whether the war in Ukraine can be ended through diplomacy. It concerns a conversation between the leaders of two major powers, Russia and the United States, and shows Moscow's official position on peace talks as relayed by a Kremlin representative.

What is known and what is not

For now, only Ushakov's interpretation of the call is available. The source contains no comment from Trump, no response from the Ukrainian government and no further details of the conversation. The exact timing and length of the call are also not given. Any such reactions would help show how the United States and Ukraine assess the conversation and whether it will affect future diplomatic efforts.