The Kremlin has refuted reports claiming that United States President-elect Donald Trump had a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which Trump allegedly advised Putin to refrain from escalating the conflict in Ukraine, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, categorically dismissed these reports as 'pure fiction.' According to The Washington Post, which cited its sources, Trump received the call from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and, during the conversation, urged the Russian president not to escalate the war in Ukraine.
Describing the media reports as 'pure fiction,' Peskov told reporters on Monday, 'This is completely untrue. This is pure fiction, it's just false information. There was no conversation. This is the most obvious example of the quality of the information that is being published now, sometimes even in fairly reputable publications.'
When asked if President Putin had any plans for contacts with Trump, Peskov responded, 'There are no concrete plans yet,' according to Al Jazeera.
The Washington Post stated that during the call, the President-elect reminded Putin of the substantial US military presence in Europe. Trump, during his election campaign, had promised to swiftly resolve the Ukrainian conflict but did not specify how he planned to achieve this.
According to the US daily, Trump privately expressed support for an agreement where Russia would retain some of the liberated territories. During the phone call with Putin, he briefly addressed the issue of territories. The US daily also noted that the Ukrainian government was informed about the call, and Kyiv officials did not object to it, understanding that Trump would discuss the matter with Putin.
Source link: https://www.khaleejtimes.com
