NANNA HEITMANN/THE NEW YORK TIMES
President Vladimir Putin of Russia during the Victory Day parade in Moscow, in May 2024. President Donald Trump said Russia planned to retaliate against Ukraine for its surprise attack over the weekend, after speaking to President Vladimir V. Putin on the phone for more than an hour today.
WASHINGTON >> President Donald Trump said Russia planned to retaliate against Ukraine for its surprise attack over the weekend, after speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone for more than an hour today.
“President Putin did say, and very strongly, that he will have to respond to the recent attack on the airfields,” Trump said in a statement on social media. He described their exchange as a “good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate Peace.” The post later disappeared from the site without explanation.
Trump did not say in the statement if he sought to discourage Putin from attacking Ukraine. He rather expressed optimism over the prospect of working with Putin on another foreign policy priority: deterring Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
The White House did not immediately respond to questions inquiring if Trump had pushed back against Putin in the phone call or why his Truth Social post had been deleted.
The post broke a rare, if temporary, silence by Trump on complex international affairs. The statement was his first about Ukraine’s drone attack on airfields in Russia, a stunning assault that hit nuclear-capable bombers, revealing a significant vulnerability.
In what amounted to a strategic and symbolic blow, Ukraine hid drones across Russia before attacking airfields in five regions stretching across five time zones. The attack cost about $7 billion in damage.
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Trump described the episode as if he were a bystander, and suggested that an aggressive Russian response was a fait accompli.
Advisers say Trump is exasperated with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
He reserves special animosity, though, for the leader of the country that was invaded in the first place. Trump has told aides repeatedly that Zelenskyy is a “bad guy” who is edging the world to the precipice of nuclear war. But he has at other times told advisers that it is understandable that Zelenskyy is fighting back, given that he is in a war against an enemy who seems determined to keep bombing Ukrainian cities.
He tends to be more deferential to Putin, although he has at times expressed disappointment. He previously seemed to think that what he described as his “very, very good relationship” with the Russian leader would bring a quick end to the war. Trump has learned the hard way what the limits of American leverage are when he is unwilling to send Ukraine more weapons and money. He has considered adding more sanctions against Russia, but has so far held off from doing so. He has refused to endorse a bipartisan Senate bill, led by his Republican ally Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, that would impose harsh economic penalties against Russia.
After calling Putin “absolutely crazy” last month, Trump shifted his tone and said he wanted to give the Russian leader two weeks to show signs of progress. And now, he says he wants Putin’s help in securing a nuclear deal with Iran.
“I stated to President Putin that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and, on this, I believe that we were in agreement,” Trump said in his statement on Truth Social. “President Putin suggested that he will participate in the discussions with Iran and that he could, perhaps, be helpful in getting this brought to a rapid conclusion.”
The Trump administration sent Iran a proposal for a deal over the weekend, but Iran has yet to offer a detailed response.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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