Trump Expresses Frustration with Putin Call: "He Wants to Continue Killing"

President Donald Trump expressed his strong frustration with his phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which they discussed developments in the war in Ukraine, describing the situation as "very difficult".

Trump told reporters on board Air Force One: "I am very frustrated with my call with President Putin. He wants to continue killing people, plain and simple, and that's not good".

Trump also mentioned discussing with Putin the sanctions imposed on Russia, noting that the Russian President "is concerned about them and realizes they may be imminent".

Trump also revealed that he discussed with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, the possibility of sending Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv to support its forces.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin stated that the call between the two presidents also addressed regional issues, including the situation in Iran and the Middle East, and lasted about an hour.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Putin and Trump "held a detailed discussion on Iran and the region", emphasizing that the Russian side stressed the "necessity of settling Middle East conflicts diplomatically", including the recent escalation between Iran and Israel.

Peskov added that "Moscow will not back down from its goals in Ukraine", but remains interested in "reaching a negotiated settlement to the conflict", affirming that the Russian side believes that resolving disputes should be "exclusively through political and diplomatic means".