US President Donald Trump said he believes his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, wants to end the war in Ukraine—despite the ongoing attacks by Russian troops.
"I think he does," Trump said in an interview with ABC News when asked if Putin wanted peace. "Putin's dream was to take over the whole country. I think because of me, he's not gonna do that," he added.
But Trump did not answer a direct question about whether he trusts the Russian president.
"I don't trust a lot of people. But I do think this. I think that he [i.e. Putin] — let's say he respects me. And I believe because of me he's not gonna take over the whole — but his decision, his choice would be to take over all of Ukraine," he said.
Also, the US president said he "was not happy when I saw Putin shooting missiles into a few towns and cities [in Ukraine]," and admitted that the Russian president may be deceiving him a little bit.
"I would say that he [i.e. Putin] would like to stop the war. I think that," the US president said.
