Russian President Vladimir Putin "remains open to any contact" with his American counterpart Donald Trump, the Kremlin said today, following Trump's criticism of Putin, weeks after their alleged rapprochement.
"The President (Putin) remains open to any contact with President Trump," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, adding that no talks between the two leaders are planned for now.
In an interview with the American television network NBC on Sunday, Trump said that he was "very upset" and "furious" with Putin over the Ukraine issue, and threatened to impose new tariffs on Russian oil.
"If Russia and I are unable to reach an agreement to end the bloodshed in Ukraine, and I believe it is Russia's fault, I will be imposing secondary tariffs on all oil coming out of Russia," Trump said.
This change in tone runs counter to the rapprochement dynamic initiated by the two presidents.
In recent weeks, Moscow and Washington have agreed to a complete overhaul of their bilateral relations, which have been seriously damaged by years of tensions, especially after 2022, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
Putin recently rejected Trump's proposal for an unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, which Kiev accepted under US pressure.
"We continue to work, first of all, on establishing bilateral relations, and we are also working on implementing certain ideas regarding the Ukrainian solution," Peskov said.
According to him, work is ongoing and there are no concrete details yet.
"It's a lengthy process, probably due to the complexity of the case," Peskov said.
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