'Neither wanted to hang up first': Putin-Trump's 'friendly' call sparks anger in Ukraine over diesel deal

Russian president Vladimir Putin and US president Donald Trump held a “very substantive and friendly” conversation on Friday, with neither leader wanting to end the call first, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said on Saturday.The remarks came as a proposed Russian diesel deal with Washington drew sharp criticism from Kyiv amid renewed Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities.Russian news agency Interfax quoted Ushakov as saying on Saturday that the conversation lasted an hour and a half.“Neither wanted to be the first to hang up,” Ushakov said. “They hung up simultaneously, literally at the same time.”The Kremlin said the leaders spent most of the conversation discussing efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Putin, however, played down the prospects of resuming three-way peace talks involving Russia, Ukraine and the US in the near future.The conversation came a day after Trump announced an agreement under which Russia would supply diesel to the US and global markets, with the stated aim of easing fuel prices.The announcement also involved a temporary easing of US sanctions on Russian fuel, prompting concern in Kyiv that Moscow could benefit financially while continuing its military campaign.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the move, calling it a “weak decision” and “an investment in a war that must be ended”.His criticism intensified on Saturday after Russian strikes killed at least 17 people in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, including three children, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service. At least 18 people were wounded after Russian aerial bombs struck residential buildings.“Today, Russia expressed its thanks for the lifting of sanctions on diesel exports by dropping five glide bombs on residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.He said the attacks showed Moscow interpreted “any easing of pressure to mean they can keep fighting, to mean they can keep dropping bombs on cities”.“Russia’s choice is war,” Zelenskyy said in a later Telegram post, following drone attacks on energy facilities and a ballistic missile strike on Kyiv. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said four people were wounded in the daytime attack on the Ukrainian capital.Zelenskyy urged Washington, European countries and other partners to maintain pressure on Moscow, warning that additional export revenue would help fund weapons components, drone upgrades, missile production and the recruitment of mercenaries.Western sanctions were imposed after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Efforts to end the war have stalled, partly over Moscow’s demands for four Ukrainian regions it does not fully control.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.