Russian President Vladimir Putin mended relations with US President Donald Trump in a phone call on the eve of the US leader’s crucial meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss supplying Kiev with new, long-range weapons.

Until Thursday’s phone call, the Washington Post notes, Trump appeared ready to bolster Ukraine’s arsenal of Tomahawk missiles. But after his phone call and meeting with Zelensky on Friday, the US president tempered his remarks and focused on the prospect of a new summit with Putin.

“Zelensky’s visit can be summed up in one sentence: Putin has once again managed to outdo them all,” commented Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Investment Fund, a close link between the Kremlin and the Trump administration. The shift is part of Trump’s often-shifting stance on the war in Ukraine, which appears to be swayed each time by contact with Putin.

Avoidance of penalties

So far, Moscow has dissuaded Trump from imposing new sanctions or sending more powerful weapons to Kiev, constantly offering him hope for a peace deal while stepping up its attacks.

“I hope we can end the war without having to talk about Tomahawk. I think we’re pretty close to that.” Trump told reporters before meeting with Zelensky, adding: “We don’t want to give away things that we need to protect our country.”

Instead of announcing new aid to Ukraine, Trump said he would hold another summit with Putin “to see if we can end this ignoble war between Russia and Ukraine.” There was no mention, or any condemnation, of the ongoing Russian raids on Ukrainian energy infrastructure ahead of the severe winter.

According to Putin, who spoke with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, the meeting is expected to take place in about two weeks in Budapest, with the aim of “formulating a series of actions for the peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis”. The Kremlin, however, has shown little sign of changing its stance, maintaining the rhetoric that the situation is “complicated” and cannot be resolved quickly, while continuing to reject any possibility of a truce.

Dmitriev even underlined that Putin’s “new script” foresees a “face-to-face meeting without interference”, showing once again the Russian leader’s strategy to avoid the meeting with Zelensky and limit the dialogue at the level of great powers.

Diplomatic games and flattery

Putin began the call with Trump by praising the “great achievement of peace in the Middle East” attributed to the Gaza deal. He also praised Melania Trump for “her efforts to return children to their families,” although, as the Washington Post points out, Russian state media have shown nude photos of the US First Lady at least twice since Trump’s return to the White House.

The Russian president reportedly warned Trump that sending Tomahawk missiles would destroy US-Russia relations and thwart any chance of peace, arguments that appear to have convinced the American leader.

Despite the Kremlin’s rhetoric of victory, however, Western sanctions and the cost of the war have weighed heavily on the Russian economy, with military spending absorbing about 40 percent of the budget. At the same time, according to the independent Levada Institute, 63% of Russians want the war to end, compared to only 30%, who ask for its continuation.