Trump says a phone call with Putin is planned “very soon”
Version 2: A new outlet, Interfax, reports that Trump's remark came in answer to a question about whether he had discussed the infection detected in the Irkutsk region with Putin, and adds Rospotrebnadzor's account that the situation there is stable; the documents now also differ on whether Trump spoke at the White House or in Maryland.
In short
US President Donald Trump said a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin is planned and will take place “very soon”. Trump gave no date or agenda. Russian outlets carried the announcement without reporting any Kremlin comment on it, while Interfax noted the question came after a journalist asked whether he had discussed an infection case in Russia's Irkutsk region with Putin.
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US President Donald Trump said a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin is planned and will take place “very soon”. Asked by journalists when the conversation would happen, he replied “очень скоро”, according to Kommersant. Vedomosti quoted him as saying at the White House: “У меня запланирован телефонный разговор с [Путиным] очень скоро”, citing Clash Report. Interfax reported the remark as made to journalists in Maryland. TASS, RBC, RIA Novosti, Kommersant, Vedomosti and Interfax all carried the announcement. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Interfax reported that Trump was answering a journalist's question about whether he had discussed with Putin the infection detected in the Irkutsk region. The outlet said Rospotrebnadzor reported on 4 October that the sanitary-epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region and the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov was stable, after a case of “pneumonia of unidentified etiology” in a female employee of the Irkutsk anti-plague institute of Siberia and the Far East. According to the agency's press service, a commission found no emergency situations in work with pathogenic microorganisms, and two Covid-19 cases and two rhinovirus cases were identified among contacts, with no other pathogens found. [ 6 ]
Kommersant reported that Trump, speaking earlier at an event in the state of Maryland, said US authorities continue working on settling the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that the end of hostilities “is really getting closer”. The remark appears only in Kommersant's account among the documents. Kommersant also recalled that in March 2025 the topics named for a Trump-Putin conversation included territories and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, and that in September 2025 Trump called dialogue with Putin “very good” while on 9 September accusing Russia of dragging out a peace settlement. [ 4 ]
Vedomosti recalled that Putin and Trump held a telephone call on 8 September 2026 that lasted about an hour, after visits by US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow and Kyiv; the two sides discussed the results of those trips. On 23 September, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian and US presidents are ready to hold another in-person meeting if necessary, while giving no specifics about a possible new summit, the outlet reported. [ 5 ]
No date, agenda or venue for the newly announced call is given in the documents, and none of them reports a Kremlin confirmation of it. Vedomosti places Trump's remark at the White House, while Kommersant and Interfax place it in Maryland; the documents do not resolve the difference. [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Why it matters
A direct channel between the US and Russian presidents is the main track cited in these reports for discussing a settlement of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. A new call would follow a September 2026 conversation and a Kremlin statement that another in-person meeting is possible if needed. The documents give no date or agenda, so the practical significance of the announced call is not yet specified.
Key facts
- Trump said a telephone call with Putin is planned and, asked when it would happen, answered “very soon”. [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- TASS, RBC, RIA Novosti, Kommersant, Vedomosti and Interfax all reported the planned call. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Kommersant reported that Trump, speaking earlier at an event in Maryland, said US authorities continue working on settling the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that the end of hostilities “is really getting closer”. [ 4 ]
- Interfax reported that Trump was answering a journalist's question about whether he had discussed with Putin the infection detected in the Irkutsk region. [ 6 ]
- Interfax reported that Rospotrebnadzor said on 4 October that the sanitary-epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region and the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov was stable, following a case of “pneumonia of unidentified etiology” in a female employee of the Irkutsk anti-plague institute; the agency said no emergency situations with pathogens were found and that two Covid-19 and two rhinovirus cases were identified among contacts. [ 6 ]
- Vedomosti reported that Putin and Trump held a telephone call on 8 September 2026 that lasted about an hour, after visits by US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow and Kyiv. [ 5 ]
- Vedomosti reported that on 23 September Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two presidents are ready to hold another in-person meeting if necessary, with no specifics on a possible new summit. [ 5 ]
- Kommersant recalled that in March 2025 the topics named for a Trump-Putin conversation included territories and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. [ 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- When the call will take place. Trump gave no date, saying only “very soon”, and no other timing appears in the documents.
- What will be discussed on the call. The documents name no agenda for this call; Kommersant lists only topics raised in March 2025, and Interfax links the question to the Irkutsk infection case without saying whether that would be on the agenda.
- Whether the Kremlin confirms the planned call. Only Trump's remarks are cited; the documents contain no comment from Russian officials on this call.
- Trump's remark that the end of hostilities “is really getting closer”. It appears in Kommersant's account alone and is not corroborated by the other documents.
- Whether a new in-person Putin-Trump meeting will take place. Vedomosti reported that Peskov said both sides are ready if needed, but that there are no specifics yet.
- Where exactly Trump made the remark. Vedomosti says he spoke at the White House, while Kommersant and Interfax say he spoke to journalists in Maryland.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- TASS reports that a Trump-Putin telephone call is planned for the near future. [ 1 ]
- RBC reports that Trump said he will call Putin in the near future. [ 2 ]
- RIA Novosti and Kommersant report the planned call; Kommersant quotes Trump saying it will happen “very soon”. [ 3 , 4 ]
- Vedomosti reports Trump saying at the White House that a call with Putin is planned “very soon”, quoting him via Clash Report. [ 5 ]
- Interfax reports Trump saying in Maryland that the call is planned and will take place “very soon”, in answer to a question about the Irkutsk region infection case. [ 6 ]
- A telephone call between Putin and Trump lasts about an hour, after visits by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow and Kyiv, according to Vedomosti. The document gives the date (8 September 2026) but no time. [ 5 ]
- Rospotrebnadzor says the sanitary-epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region, Irkutsk and Shelekhov is stable, according to Interfax. The document gives the date (4 October) but no time. [ 6 ]