'Won't back down': Putin tells Trump Russia will pursue Ukraine goals, in 6th call since January

Russian President Vladimir Putin during a phone call with US President Donald Trump said that Moscow wants a negotiated end to the Ukraine war, but will not back down from pursuing its original goal, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.

"Our president said that Russia will pursue its goals, specifically addressing the root causes that led to the current situation, and will not back down from these objectives," Ushakov said.In a broad, hour-long discussion primarily focused on Russia’s war in Ukraine and developments in the Middle East,Trump once again brought up the idea of ending military action in Ukraine early. This was the sixth call between Putin and Trump this year."Trump once again emphasized the need to end military hostilities as soon as possible. Vladimir Putin noted that Russia continues to seek a politically negotiated solution to the conflict," Ushakov added.According to the Kremlin, Putin briefed Trump on the progress of last month’s Russia-Ukraine agreements regarding the exchange of prisoners of war and dead soldiers, and expressed Moscow’s willingness to resume talks with Kyiv.

"Our president also said that Russia will achieve the goals it has set: that is, the elimination of the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs, to the current acute confrontation, and Russia will not back down from these goals," he added.Putin’s message came as Russia in recent weeks has ramped up its drone and missile strikes across Ukraine, resulting in hundreds of civilian casualties and injuries.The Kremlin’s statement didn’t indicate that Putin had changed Russia’s stance during his talk with Trump, who came into office promising to end the war quickly but has often expressed frustration over the lack of progress in peace talks.The term "root causes" refers to the Kremlin's claim that it had no choice but to go to war in Ukraine to stop the country from joining NATO and being used by the West as a base to threaten Russia.The phone call took place just a day after the US halted deliveries of critical weapons to Ukraine, such as Patriot air defense systems and precision-guided missiles. Ukraine’s foreign ministry warned that the delay weakens their defense and could encourage Russia to intensify its attacks.But Trump and Putin did not talk about the latest decision of the US to halt shipments.On Iran, Ushakov said, "The Russian side emphasised the importance of resolving all disputes, disagreements and conflict situations exclusively by political and diplomatic means".