According to a report in the Financial Times, during a July 4 call President Donald Trump privately asked his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky whether Ukraine could target Moscow and St. Petersburg if supplied with long-range weapons, saying he wanted Russians to “feel the pain.” Zelensky reportedly replied that Ukraine could, if given the weapons.
Multiple outlets, including Reuters, The Daily Beast, and The Times of India, have corroborated the FT’s account.
The comments marked a clear departure from Trump’s prior position of avoiding deep strikes in Russia.
The strategy could inflict enough pain to propel Russia toward a ceasefire — but it also risks escalating the conflict and destabilizing nuclear brinkmanship.
After the report surfaced, Trump, the White House, and NATO officials all stated Ukraine should not strike Moscow, describing earlier comments as private musings, not official policy.
As the New York Post reports:
“Volodymyr, can you hit Moscow? … Can you hit St Petersburg too?” Trump asked on a July 4 call with Zelensky, a day after the president had a disappointing phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, the Financial Times reported, citing multiple sources.
Zelensky, who has pressed Western powers for years to provide more long-range missiles, reportedly replied, “Absolutely. We can if you give us the weapons.”
The president later clarified to reporters Tuesday that Zelensky “shouldn’t target Moscow” and stressed that he’s “on nobody’s side” with the simple goal of stopping the killing. Trump further said that he has no plans to give Ukraine long-range missiles.
The White House insisted in a statement to The Post that the comments should not be taken out of context, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt pushing back on the Financial Times’ framing of the call, which suggested Trump encouraged Zelensky to step up strikes deep into Russian territory.
“The Financial Times is notorious for taking words wildly out of context to get clicks because their paper is dying,” Leavitt fired back in a statement to the Post.
Though the call suggested a significant pivot by the White House — signaling possible support for Ukrainian operations deep inside Russia to pressure Putin into negotiations — subsequent public statements have distanced Trump from any aggressive escalation.
If enacted, such a move would mark a major escalation in the war and a profound shift in U.S. foreign policy.
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