Following Trump–Putin call, Zelensky says ‘Russia is giving the finger to the entire world’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again called for increased pressure on Russia in order to help end the war, in a statement posted on X Wednesday evening, shortly after a phone call between the Russian and U.S. presidents.

“Many have spoken with Russia at various levels. But none of these talks have brought a reliable peace, or even stopped the war,” Zelensky wrote. “Unfortunately, Putin feels impunity. Even after all of Russia’s horrific attacks, he is reportedly preparing yet more so-called ‘responses.’ [W]ith every new strike, with every delay of diplomacy, Russia is giving the finger to the entire world — to all those who still hesitate to increase pressure on it.”

“[T]oday, on the Day of Remembrance of Ukrainian Children Killed by Russian Aggression, we remind the powerful of this world of the facts,” he continued. “If the powerful do not stop Putin, it means they share responsibility with him. And if they want to stop him but cannot, then Putin will no longer see them as powerful.”

On the evening of June 4, Donald Trump said he had spoken by phone with Vladimir Putin — their fourth conversation since Trump returned to the White House. The two leaders reportedly discussed the war in Ukraine, among other things. Trump wrote that it was “a good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate Peace.” He added that Putin had warned he would “have to respond” to Ukraine’s recent drone strikes on Russian military air bases.

After the call, Trump posted a link to a Washington Post column urging Congress to impose a 500 percent tariff on buyers of Russian energy to give him greater leverage over Putin. At the same time, following Trump’s last call with Putin back in May, media outlets reported that the U.S. president had signaled to European officials that he was not inclined to introduce additional sanctions against Russia.