London. US President Donald Trump asked his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky whether he might"hit" the Russian cities of Moscow or St. Petersburg in a phone call on July 4, the British newspaper Financial Times (FT) reported Tuesday.

The outlet, which cited sources familiar with the call, which came a day after Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke, said the U.S. president encouraged Zelensky to escalate attacks inside Russia.

The Ukrainian president, for his part, responded that they could reach Moscow or St. Petersburg if the United States provided them with long-range weapons.

"Volodymyr, can you attack Moscow? Can you attack St. Petersburg too?", the FT reports of Trump's words, to which Zelensky responded that"of course" if they "give them the weapons."

This Trump strategy, according to what was published in the British newspaper, is to"make them feel the pain (the Russians)" and force the Kremlin to sit at the negotiating table to reach a solution to the conflict that erupted in February 2022.

Will Trump give Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine?

For its part, the newspaper The Washington Post reported that Trump considered sending Tomahawk missiles to kyiv, capable of reaching Moscow and St. Petersburg.

The Tomahawks are not included in the current aid packages, but could be included later if Trump decides to increase pressure on Putin. According to the Post, the United States could authorize Ukraine to use the 18 long-range ATACMS missiles currently in the country, with a maximum range of 300 kilometers.

On Tuesday, the US president said in an interview with the BBC that he was disappointed with Putin but stressed that he was not yet ready to break with him."I'm disappointed, but I'm not done with him," Trump said.

When asked how he plans to end what he calls the"bloodbath" in the Russian-Ukrainian war, Trump simply said,"We're working on it."

Trump's ultimatum to Russia is "theatrical," they say in Moscow.

Former President Dmitry Medvedev called Trump's ultimatum to raise tariffs on Russia if it does not end the war in Ukraine within 50 days"theatrical," and said Russia does not care about the threat.

"Trump issued a theatrical ultimatum to the Kremlin. The world shuddered, waiting for the consequences. Belligerent Europe was disappointed. Russia didn't care," Medvedev posted on the social network X.

mcc