ISLAMABAD (PEN) : U.S. President Donald Trump said that a nearly hour-long phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin yielded “no progress at all” on diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine .
No Ceasefire Breakthrough
“I didn’t make any progress with him at all,” Trump told reporters as he departed Washington for Iowa, adding that he was “not happy” with the ongoing conflict
Conversation Details
According to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, the leaders did not discuss a recent pause in some U.S. weapons shipments to Kyiv during their call . Putin reiterated that Moscow would continue pushing to address the conflict’s “root causes,” a reference to NATO expansion and Western support for Ukraine
Post-Call Developments
Just hours after the call, a suspected Russian drone attack ignited an apartment fire in a northern Kyiv suburb. Reports from Reuters correspondents in the capital noted explosions and heavy machine-gun fire as air defense systems countered incoming drones. In eastern Ukraine, shelling claimed five lives
Weapons Pause & Political Reactions
The U.S. has temporarily paused shipments of certain critical arms, including Patriot missiles, to Ukraine due to low stockpiles. Trump defended the decision, commenting:
“We’re giving weapons, but we’ve given so many weapons… Biden emptied out our whole country giving them weapons, and we have to make sure that we have enough for ourselves.”
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed hopes of speaking with Trump by Friday to discuss the pause
What’s Next?
With diplomacy appearing stalled, pressure is mounting in Washington—especially among Republicans—for a tougher stance. Meanwhile, Moscow maintains that only Russia and Ukraine can resolve the conflict at the negotiating tabl