Kremlin Responds to Trump‘s Claim Putin “Failed Him” on Ukraine War
Moscow – September 19, 2025 – The Kremlin acknowledged Donald Trump’s recent statements expressing disappointment with Vladimir Putin’s handling of the war in Ukraine, attributing the former U.S. President’s remarks to an “emotional” reaction. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that Moscow believes Trump and the United States “retain their political will and intention to further make efforts to assist [in] Ukrainian settlement,” according to Russian state media outlets Ria News and TASS.
Peskov asserted that Putin remains open to resolving the conflict through “political and diplomatic means,” but blamed Ukrainian and European leadership for pursuing a path of “confrontation” that hinders progress.
The response follows Trump’s repeated expressions of doubt regarding his ability to influence Putin to end the war, and his claim on September 18th that Putin had “failed him” after Trump believed a resolution would be easily achieved due to their prior relationship. “But he failed me, he really failed me,” Trump reportedly said. Earlier, on September 14th, Trump began voicing concerns about his leverage over the Russian leader regarding the cessation of the war.
