U.S. President Donald Trump offered to help bring an end to the war in Ukraine during a nearly 90-minute telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said on July 5th, as both leaders discussed the conflict, the situation in Iran and other international issues ahead of next week’s NATO summit in Turkey.
The conversation took place on the eve of the United States’ Independence Day celebrations, with President Putin extending congratulations to President Trump and the American people on the country’s 250th anniversary. According to the Kremlin, Mr. Putin wished the United States prosperity and noted the historic ties between the two countries.
According to Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, Mr. Trump reaffirmed his willingness to assist in reaching a settlement to the more than four-year-old war, telling his Russian counterpart that he remained ready to contribute to efforts aimed at ending the conflict as quickly as possible. Mr. Ushakov described the conversation as “businesslike” and “highly constructive.”
The Kremlin said Mr. Trump’s offer came in the context of his planned participation at the NATO summit scheduled to take place in Ankara on July 7-8, where Ukraine is expected to remain a central topic of discussion. Mr. Ushakov said the American President expressed support for diplomatic efforts and indicated that Washington would continue working toward a negotiated settlement.
According to the Kremlin aide, Mr. Trump also signalled that U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner could make another visit to Moscow as diplomatic contacts continue. No timetable for such a visit was announced.
Mr. Putin, for his part, reiterated Russia’s readiness to continue negotiations with Ukraine while maintaining that Moscow would not abandon what it describes as the objectives of its military campaign. Ushakov said the Russian president informed Mr. Trump that Russian forces were continuing offensive operations and claimed they had captured the strategically important eastern Ukrainian city of Kostiantynivka.
Ukraine has rejected that claim. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the country’s General Staff have said Ukrainian troops continue to hold the city and denied Russian assertions that it had fallen.
Mr. Ushakov also accused Ukraine and its European backers of attempting to prolong or escalate the conflict, alleging that Kyiv had resorted to what he characterized as terrorist tactics, including long-range strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. Ukraine has consistently defended attacks on Russian military and energy-related targets as legitimate operations aimed at weakening Moscow’s war effort.
Beyond Ukraine, the two presidents discussed developments surrounding Iran and broader Middle East security, according to the Kremlin. Mr. Ushakov said both leaders exchanged views on regional stability but did not disclose additional details of the discussion.
The call was one of the longest publicly disclosed conversations between the two leaders this year and underscored ongoing diplomatic contacts even as hostilities continue in Ukraine and diplomatic efforts to reach a settlement remain stalled. The Kremlin did not indicate that any concrete agreements had been reached or that new peace negotiations had been scheduled.
The phone call also came shortly after President Trump held a separate conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Mr. Zelenskyy later described the discussion as “very good” and said the two leaders agreed on the need for “American resolve” to help bring the war to an end.
“There is a real prospect to end this war and American resolve will have a crucial meaning,” he said, while noting that the two Presidents planned to continue discussions during the NATO summit in Turkey next week.
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Neither the White House nor Ukrainian officials immediately commented on the Kremlin’s detailed account of the Trump-Putin conversation beyond President Zelenskyy’s separate remarks.
Efforts to negotiate an end to the war have repeatedly stalled despite several rounds of diplomatic engagement involving the United States, Russia and Ukraine over recent months. While Washington has continued to support negotiations, Moscow and Kyiv remain deeply divided over the conditions for any settlement, and fighting has continued across multiple sectors of the front line.
Tanmay Kadam is a geopolitical observer based in India. He has experience working as a Defence and International Affairs journalist for EurAsian Times. He can be contacted at tanmaykadam700@gmail.com.