President Trump said Thursday he made “no progress” during his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on attempts to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine.
“We had a call. It was a pretty long call. Talked about a lot of things, including Iran,” Trump told reporters on Thursday as he departed for Iowa. “And we also talked about, as you know, the war with Ukraine, and I’m not happy about that.”
Asked if he had made any progress in brokering an end to the fighting in Ukraine, Trump responded, “No. I didn’t make any progress with him today at all.”
The two leaders spoke on Thursday morning. The call took place a day after the Pentagon confirmed a decision to halt the delivery of some air defense missiles and munitions to Ukraine, citing concerns about U.S. military stockpiles being depleted.
Trump downplayed the impact when asked about the pause on Thursday evening.
“We’re giving weapons … and we’re working with them and trying to help them,” Trump said. “But we have — you know Biden emptied out our whole country giving them weapons. And we have to make sure we have enough for ourselves.”
The U.S. has given tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022, though many Trump allies have expressed skepticism about continued American support for Kyiv. Democrats, and a small number of Republicans and European allies, have warned that abandoning Ukraine would be a major victory for Putin and Russia.
Trump campaigned on a pledge to end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours, a timeline he has since described as sarcastic. Still, he has struggled to make progress in bringing the fighting to an end, lashing out at various points at Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
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