Fri Jul 04 10:50:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing the key points of the text:

**Headline: Putin Tells Trump Ukraine Peace Talks Must Be Between Kyiv and Moscow, Signals Wary of US Involvement**

**Washington D.C.** – Russian President Vladimir Putin has reiterated to former U.S. President Donald Trump that any future peace negotiations regarding the war in Ukraine must occur directly between Kyiv and Moscow. The statement, made during a one-hour phone call Thursday, comes amid increasing signs that the Kremlin prefers to exclude the United States from the negotiating table.

According to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, Putin told Trump that Russia “will not back down” from its goal of addressing the “root causes” of the conflict, a reference to Moscow’s justification for the 2022 invasion – preventing Ukraine from joining NATO and being used as a base for Western aggression.

While Putin expressed a “readiness” to seek a political and negotiated solution, he has rejected Washington’s push for an unconditional ceasefire, with Ukraine supporting the proposal.

Trump acknowledged the call yielded “no progress” toward a ceasefire and that he remained “not happy” about the war.

The call took place a day after the Pentagon confirmed a pause in some weapons deliveries to Ukraine, promised under President Biden’s administration, due to a lack of funds. This pause comes as Russia has intensified its attacks on Ukraine.

While Trump and Putin did not discuss the paused weapons deliveries, Ushakov stated that the U.S. president did raise the issue of bringing a swift end to the war.

Ushakov’s comment that any peace negotiations needed to occur between Moscow and Kyiv aligns with indications that Russia is trying to avoid a trilateral format, as evidenced by reports that Russian negotiators asked US diplomats to leave a meeting in Istanbul earlier this month.

During the call, Putin also emphasised the need to resolve all “disputes, disagreements and conflict situations” regarding Iran through diplomatic means.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who met with European Union leaders in Denmark on Thursday, acknowledged that doubts over U.S. military aid to Ukraine reinforced the need to strengthen cooperation and coordination through the EU, NATO, and direct relations. He hopes to speak to Trump as soon as Friday about the pause in weapons shipments.

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