US President-elect Donald Trump has spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin and urged him not to escalate the war in Ukraine, the Washington Post reported Sunday.
Trump spoke with Putin from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Thursday, just days after his stunning election victory over Democratic rival Kamala Harris, the report said.
The president-elect’s representatives did not respond immediately when asked by AFP for comment.
The Post, citing several people familiar with the call who spoke on the basis of anonymity, reported that Trump had reminded Putin of America’s sizable military presence in Europe.
They said he also expressed an interest in further conversations to discuss “the resolution of Ukraine’s war soon.”
Trump’s election is seen as carrying the potential to upend the almost three-year Ukraine conflict, as he insists on a quick end to the fighting and casts doubt on Washington’s multi-billion dollar support for Kyiv.
Russian state media earlier welcomed Trump’s victory, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying: “The signals are positive… At least he’s talking about peace, and not about confrontation.”
Earlier this week, Putin himself praised Trump for being “courageous” after the attempt on his life in July and said he was “ready” to hold talks.
During his campaign, Trump repeatedly vowed to quickly end the Ukraine war — even before he is sworn in to office on January 20 — but has never said how he might do so.
Any quick deal is expected to require Kyiv to cede some of the territory it has lost to Russian invaders in Ukraine’s south and east.
Kyiv, though facing a manpower shortage and uncertainty over US support, has steadfastly opposed such a deal. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that giving up land or meeting other hardline demands would only embolden the Kremlin and provoke more aggression.
People familiar with Thursday’s call said Trump had briefly raised the question of land.
In recent months, both sides in the war have made moves seen as possible efforts to gain leverage ahead of eventual negotiations, with Ukraine seizing a chunk of Russian territory and Moscow’s troops making advances in Ukraine.
This weekend brought the biggest drone attacks yet from both sides.
Russia fired 145 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, while Russia said it had downed 34 Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow on Sunday.
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