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Trump says White House had 'serious discussions' with Russia about Ukraine war |
Trump did not say who from his administration has been in contact with the Russians but insisted the two sides were "already talking."
Asked if he has already spoken directly with Putin, Trump said only, "I don't want to say that."
Trump has said repeatedly he wouldn't have allowed the conflict to start if he had been in office, even though he was president as fighting grew in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv's forces and separatists backed by Moscow, ahead of Putin sending in tens of thousands of troops in 2022.
Since returning to office, Trump has criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he should have made a deal with Putin to avoid the conflict.
In a Fox News interview earlier in January, Trump ridiculed Zelenskyy as "talking so brave," when Ukraine was so dependent on US aid to fight its war.
"They were brave, but we gave them billions of dollars," Trump said.
Ukraine currently relies on the US for around 40% of its military needs and since February 2022, Washington has sent Kyiv more than $65 billion (€62 billion).
In a recent interview with Russian state television, Putin praised Trump as a "clever and pragmatic man" who is focused on US interests.
"We always had a business-like, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current US president," Putin said.
"I couldn't disagree with him that if he had been president, if they
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