Kremlin: Putin signals retaliation for Ukrainian strikes during phone call with Trump

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of a potential response to recent Ukrainian strikes on Russian airfields during a phone call with US President Donald Trump on June 4, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

In comments to journalists, Peskov confirmed that Putin had made such a statement during the call. “Yes, indeed,” he said when asked directly whether the Russian president indicated plans to respond to the Ukrainian drone attacks.

The call marked the fourth telephone conversation between the two leaders this year and lasted approximately one hour and ten minutes, according to Russian accounts. Trump, in a post on his social media platform Truth Social, gave a similar timeframe of “approximately one hour and 15 minutes.” He described the exchange as covering a range of international issues, notably the war in Ukraine and rising tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme.

“We discussed the attack on Russia’s docked aeroplanes by Ukraine, and also various other attacks that have been taking place by both sides,” Trump wrote. He called the discussion “a good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate peace.”

Despite the weighty topics, Trump clarified that sanctions were not on the agenda: “The issue of sanctions was not raised at all,” he said.

Peskov also commented on the nature and length of the discussion, urging observers not to overemphasise the comparatively short duration of the call. “The conversation was constructive, and there is literally no point in focusing on its duration,” he told journalists. “Sometimes, in a shorter period of time, it is possible to say a lot of important things, which is what happened yesterday.”

Peskov added that while Putin remains in favour of continued contact with the Ukrainian side, there are currently no agreements in place for a direct meeting between Putin and Trump.

The call came just days after Ukraine’s Security Service launched a major long-range drone operation targeting several Russian military airbases, prompting heightened concern in Moscow.

By Tamilla Hasanova