ROME, July 4. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump are holding direct talks, keeping the EU out of the loop, which poses a serious threat to Ukraine, the Italian newspaper La Stampa wrote.
According to the newspaper, Kiev now finds itself in its most precarious position since the conflict began three-and-a-half years ago, due to what it calls "the distorted combination of Moscow’s military pressure, Washington’s strategic indifference and Europe's insufficient capacity to provide help."
The newspaper stated that during the July 3 phone call with Putin, Donald Trump refused to follow the European line taken by his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron. According to La Stampa, Trump "spent more time talking on the phone with Vladimir Putin than he did engaging with allied leaders at NATO or during the G7 summit."
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump held a phone conversation on July 3. It was their fourth call in six weeks and sixth since the beginning of the year, TASS calculates. The Russian and American leaders’ conversation lasted nearly an hour, Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov told reporters. The heads of state discussed issues including the Ukrainian conflict settlement and the Middle East situation. Additionally, Putin and Trump discussed potential exchanges of films, promoting traditional values shared by both Russia and the US administration.