The Kremlin has denied reports that President-elect Donald Trump spoke directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone on Nov. 7, branding the claim " pure fiction."
The Washington Post (WP) citing sources familiar with the matter, reported on Nov. 10 that the call took place, claiming Trump advised Putin not to escalate the war in Ukraine, and highlighted Washington’s significant military presence in Europe.
Trump and Putin also discussed the importance of peace in Europe, with Trump expressing interest in continuing conversations aimed at "the resolution of Ukraine’s war soon," according to several sources.
Speaking on Nov. 11, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed the reports.
"This is the most vivid example of the quality of the information that is now published, sometimes even in fairly respected publications," he told Interfax.
"This is completely untrue. This is pure fiction, this is just false information."
WP had also reported that Ukraine had been informed about the call before it took place, a claim denied by Kyiv.
"Reports that the Ukrainian side was informed in advance of the alleged call are false. Subsequently, Ukraine could not have endorsed or opposed the call," foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi told Reuters on Nov. 11.
The alleged call took place amid widespread uncertainty about Trump’s approach to realigning U.S. relationships with global allies and adversaries after his election victory on Nov. 5.
On Nov. 7, Trump told NBC he had spoken with about 70 world leaders since winning the election, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, with Elon Musk joining that call.
Throughout his campaign, Trump pledged to bring an immediate end to the war in Ukraine but has not elaborated on specific plans.
Chris York
(Updated: )
