Putin insists to Trump that he will not renounce Ukraine's surrender.

MoscowVladimir Putin isn't willing to make any concessions no matter how much Donald Trump demands a ceasefire in Ukraine. In a new telephone conversation between the two this Thursday, the sixth in less than five months, the Russian president once again made it clear that he will not abandon his maximalist objectives: "eliminating the root causes of the conflict," that is, Kiev's virtual surrender. Once again, the Kremlin leader flattered his interlocutor, confident that he knows his own position and that, in this way, he will continue to avoid the threat of new sanctions.

The call came the day after the United States suspended some arms deliveries to Ukraine. This has been one of Putin's conditions for accepting a truce from the beginning. However, according to the Russian president's advisor, Yuri Uyzakov, it is an issue the two presidents have not discussed. This Friday, Volodymyr Zelensky hopes to convince Trump by phone to back down and not postpone the planned military aid shipments, which are crucial, among other things, to protect Ukrainian cities from Russian missiles and drones.

Putin has once again dismissed Trump's insistence on reaching a peace agreement with a general willingness to resolve the war "through diplomatic means." His intention, he says, is to continue bilateral talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul, although they have not addressed when their third round might take place. The last meeting, on June 2, served to agree on an exchange of prisoners of war and soldiers' bodies, but did not result in any progress in the negotiations.

The Kremlin's strategy hasn't changed since relations with the White House were resumed in February of this year. The Russian president is trying to curry favor with Trump through flattery and business offers, while displaying an apparent desire to end the war. However, he is actually buying time to advance on the front lines, where he hopes to achieve new conquests that will allow him to enter eventual peace talks with the upper hand.

Thus, in this latest call, Putin began by congratulating his counterpart on the "successful passage" in the US Congress of one of his flagship bills, tax reform. He also wished him a happy Fourth of July, the Independence Day holiday. According to Ushakov, the Russian leader wanted to highlight the "significant" role Russia played in the creation of the United States, both during the War of Independence and the War of Spanish Succession. This was all to remind us that they were not only allies in the world wars, but that their relationship "has deep roots."

Trump's hope that Putin will eventually agree to negotiate peace is the argument he has used for months to delay the imposition of new sanctions on Russia. Neither pressure from Zelensky and the European allies nor the daily hints that a ceasefire is part of Moscow's immediate plans have prevented Russians and Americans from exploring new avenues for economic cooperation.

More collaboration scenarios

Putin, aware of the weaknesses of his rival, whom he has been allowed the liberty of calling "partner" on more than one occasion, once again proposed new scenarios for collaboration this Thursday. For example, in the energy and aerospace sectors. At the end of February, while Washington and Kiev were discussing the agreement to exploit rare minerals, the Kremlin leader had already opened the door to Trump working together on Russian deposits, including those in the occupied Ukrainian regions.

And yet another example of this spirit of finding common ground: Putin suggested to the American leader that they exchange films that represent the values shared by Russia and the United States. This ambiguous proposal, which arose from a forum currently being held in Moscow, has pleased Trump, according to the Kremlin's account of the call.

What remains a long way off, as is clear from the conversation, is a face-to-face Putin-Trump meeting. Both have always claimed to be open to meeting, but they seem more comfortable with the current situation, which does not require them to make major commitments but allows them to deepen the diplomatic thaw, based on an undisguised mutual admiration and a shared worldview.

To Zelensky's dismay, Both Putin and Trump envision a world in which the great powers, condemned to understand each other, make and unmake the destiny of other nations. And that explains why, every time the two of them pick up the phone, the Russian president knows how to hit the right buttons to get what he wants from his interlocutor. And Trump, no matter how much fuss he makes when Russian missiles kill Ukrainian civilians, is playing their game.