Trump talks Ukraine in separate calls with Putin, Scholz

US President-elect Donald Trump has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin about ending the war in Ukraine in a phone call reported by the Washington Post on Sunday. 

The newspaper, citing several people familiar with the call who spoke on the basis of anonymity, reported that Trump had reminded Putin of the sizable US military presence in Europe.

The Post also reported that Trump was keen to have further conversations to talk about "the resolution" of the war soon. 

Trump has criticized the scale of military and financial support for Kyiv under US President Joe Biden's administration, while the soon-to-be president has vowed to end the war quickly, without specifying how.

Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday shortly after his election victory was confirmed.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said it was not informed in advance of the call between Trump and Putin.

Steven Cheung, Trump's communications director, said when asked about the call: "We do not comment on private calls between President Trump and other world leaders."

The call was reported to have taken place from Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate on Thursday. 

Kremlin denies call took place 

On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the Washington Post report that a phone call took place. 

"This is completely untrue. This is pure fiction, it's just false information," Peskov told reporters. "There was no conversation."

Peskov added there were "no concrete plans" for Putin nto speak with Trump. 

In previous comments on Sunday, Peskov said Trump's return to the Oval Office sent "positive signals." 

"At least he's talking about peace, and not about confrontation," Peskov said. 

The Biden administration, which will remain in charge until Trump's inauguration on January 20, has said it will send Ukraine as much aid as possible before Biden leaves office. 

On Sunday, Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the White House aimed "to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position on the battlefield so that it is ultimately in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table."

Sullivan also confirmed Biden has invited Trump to come to the White House for talks on Wednesday.

'You dance with those who are in the room,' Scholz says on Trump

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also spoke with Trump on Sunday about working together towards a "return of peace" to Europe, according to Scholz's spokesman Steffen Hebestreit.

During the call, Scholz emphasized the importance of continuing to provide Ukraine with support, Hebestreit said.

In their first telephone call since Trump won the US election, Scholz offered Trump the opportunity to "continue the decades of successful cooperation between the governments of both countries," the spokesman added.  

On Sunday evening, Scholz appeared on a talk show on public broadcaster ARD, and seemed unfazed about the prospect of future cooperation with Trump, saying you have to take political situations as they come.

"My principle is always, if I may say so casually: You dance with those who are in the room. And that also applies to the future president of the US," Scholz said.

"I'm never naive, but I'm also a bit unflustered," he added. 

During his first term as US president, Trump criticized Berlin for insufficient military spending, the country's trade surplus and the German-Russian gas pipeline Nord Stream 2. 

Scholz pointed out that Germany is now spending 2% of its gross national product on defense. This falls in line with NATO guidelines.

The chancellor also made it clear that he expects Trump to adhere to the commitment made by outgoing President Biden to station US intermediate-range missiles in Germany. 

"This is an agreement we have made with the US. It is in our mutual interest. So I want to accept it," Scholz said.

Musk's 'fool' comment dismissed by Scholz

Scholz also dismissed recent criticism from Trump supporter and tech billionaire Elon Musk, who mocked the chancellor over the collapse of the ruling coalition in Germany. 

Musk had written in German on the social media platform X, which he owns: "Olaf is a fool."

When asked if this bothered him, Scholz replied, "It honors me."

"I don't comment on tech billionaires," the chancellor said. "He is not a head of state, even if one sometimes gets the impression that some tech corporations are more powerful than states."

Scholz is set to face a confidence vote before the end of the year in the Bundestag ahead of a likely snap election in early 2025.

jsi/lo,wmr (AFP, dpa, Reuters)