Kremlin praises Trump for criticising use of US missiles in deep strikes

The Kremlin praised US President-elect Donald Trump on Friday for criticising Ukrainian missile strikes deep into Russian territory but said discussions about deploying European troops to keep a possible future peace in Ukraine were premature.

With Russia advancing at the fastest rate since the 2022 invasion, Trump and some European leaders have discussed how to end the war in Ukraine. Trump criticised Ukraine’s use of US-supplied missiles for attacks deep into Russia in a Time magazine interview published on Thursday, saying it was “crazy” because it escalated the war. He said Washington should not have allowed it.

“The statement itself completely coincides with our position,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. He said Trump’s remarks were in line with “our vision of the causes of escalation”.

Peskov said, “It is obvious that Trump understands exactly what is escalating the situation.” Russia has said the decision by US President Joe Biden to let Ukraine strike deep into Russia with US-made ATACMS ballistic missiles could trigger a world war, but some Western leaders suggest Russia has military ambitions beyond Ukraine.