Trump Contradicts Kremlin, Denies Discussing Halt to Ukraine Aid With Putin
March 18, 2025
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Sonam Sheth is an Evening Politics Editor at Newsweek who is based in New York. She joined Newsweek in 2024 and previously worked at Business Insider and CNBC. Sonam has extensive experience covering national security, foreign policy, elections, and stories at the intersection of law and politics. Her work has been cited in The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, and others. She has also frequently appeared on national television and radio, including MSNBC, NBC News, BBC World News, BBC News radio, and more. You can get in touch with Sonam at s.sheth@newsweek.com. Languages: English, Hindi, and French.
Sonam Sheth
Evening Politics Editor
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President Donald Trump on Tuesday denied discussing an end to U.S. aid for Ukraine during his high-stakes phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, contradicting a central claim from the Kremlin.
The Context
Trump and Putin’s call came after weeks of negotiations between American, Russian and Ukrainian officials about reaching a ceasefire agreement in the Russia-Ukraine war.
While the United States and Russia expressed a shared interest in de-escalation, the official readouts of the conversation diverged on key details, particularly regarding the scope of a ceasefire.
Putin agreed to a partial ceasefire—as opposed to a broader one, for which the U.S. and Ukraine had hoped—but only on the condition that Ukraine not rearm and that all U.S. military and intelligence aid to Ukraine be cut off.
What To Know
The Kremlin said in its readout that a “key condition” Putin laid out for working toward a long-term solution to the war was the “complete cessation of foreign military aid and the provision of intelligence information to Kyiv.”
But Trump told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham the topic of aid to Ukraine never came up in their conversation.
The Kremlin said that Putin “demanded an immediate cessation of aid to the Ukraine in order to get to this multistep deal,” Ingraham said, referring to the Kremlin’s readout.
“No, he didn’t,” Trump said. “We didn’t talk about aid, actually, we didn’t talk about aid at all. We talked about a lot of things, but aid was never discussed.”
President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard, not pictured, is sworn in as director of national intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House on February 12 in Washington, D.C. President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard, not pictured, is sworn in as director of national intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House on February 12 in Washington, D.C. Alex Brandon/AP
This story is developing and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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