President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Ukraine and Iran, among other issues, in a phone call Thursday.
Mr. Trump told reporters later that “I didn’t make any progress with him today at all” on the war in Ukraine.
“I’m not happy about that,” Mr. Trump said of the war.
Mr. Putin talked about the situation with Iran and the Middle East with an emphasis on finding ways to resolve the issue “exclusively by political and diplomatic means,” said Yuri Ushakov, his foreign affairs adviser.
The Russian official said Mr. Trump urged Mr. Putin to stop the fighting with Ukraine, and Mr. Putin said his country is ready to speak with Ukraine.
Mr. Ushakov also said that Russia “will not back down from these goals” in Ukraine.
The call comes amid the Russia-Ukraine war, which Mr. Trump said during last year’s campaign he would end fast but has yet to do so.
The administration recently decided to hold back the delivery of several weapons to Ukraine over concerns about America’s own stockpiles.
“This decision was made to put America’s interests first following a review of our nation’s military support and assistance to other countries across the globe,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement. “The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned — just ask Iran.”
The halt of weapons into Ukraine comes as a blow to Kyiv as Russia continues its attacks.
It also comes after Mr. Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit last week in The Hague, where the U.S. president said Mr. Zelenskyy “couldn’t have been nicer.”
Russia called the weapon stoppage to Ukraine a win.
“As far as we understand, the reasons behind this move were empty warehouses, as well as a lack of arms in these warehouses. But in any case, the fewer arms supplied to Ukraine, the closer the end of the special military operation will be,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to TASS, Russia’s state-owned news agency.
• This story is based in part on wire service reports.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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