Russia is hailing the recent phone call between President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump as a diplomatic win, with headlines in Moscow echoing this sentiment. The call, which lasted over two hours, has been widely described as a “record-length conversation” by Komsomolskaya Pravda, with the outlet declaring, “Russia has scored a diplomatic victory here.”
Why is this call being hailed as a victory by some in Russia?
The key reason may lie in the fact that, by the end of the conversation, Putin had not been pressured into making significant concessions on Ukraine or to the United States. On the contrary, he rejected Trump’s suggestion for an immediate, unconditional 30-day ceasefire, instead outlining his own peace terms.
These terms, which include halting Western military aid to Kyiv, sharing intelligence with the Ukrainians, and banning mobilization in Ukraine, are largely seen as a strategy to force Ukraine’s surrender.
Given the nature of these conditions, it is hard to imagine that Kyiv would accept them. However, the question remains: could the Trump administration eventually be convinced by Moscow that these terms are acceptable?
