Russia wants to know if Trump's stance on Ukraine war shifted after G7

MOSCOW — Russia is seeking clarification on whether Donald Trump has shifted his position on the war in Ukraine, after remarks made by Emmanuel Macron at this month’s G7 summit, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday.

Macron, who hosted the summit in Evian-les-Bains, said Trump acknowledged during discussions that Russia did not want peace in Ukraine. He described this as “a real change in approach” from Washington.

Trump, meanwhile, called for Russia to pursue peace following what he described as a “very good” meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The remarks sparked cautious optimism among G7 leaders that progress toward a potential peace agreement could be possible.

“As far as Ukraine is concerned, we want to understand what happened in Evian,” Lavrov said at an event in Moscow.

“The Americans haven’t yet told us what they took away from the summit in Evian or what their future course of action will be,” he added.

Lavrov also cited Macron as saying that understandings reached last August between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during talks in Anchorage had effectively been “buried” at the Evian summit.

Russian officials have frequently referred to the so-called “Spirit of Anchorage,” a term analysts say reflects Moscow’s interpretation of a possible framework in which Ukrainian forces would withdraw from parts of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine in exchange for Russia freezing its current front lines. Kyiv has repeatedly rejected any proposal involving territorial concessions.

Russian frustration over stalled diplomacy

Lavrov signaled growing frustration in Moscow over the state of negotiations, suggesting earlier this week that the Anchorage meeting may have been a “U.S. ploy” to delay while Ukraine rearmed.

Other senior Russian officials have also accused Washington of failing to follow through on what they describe as earlier “understandings” reached in Anchorage.

On Wednesday, Lavrov said Putin had accepted what he described as a U.S. proposal during the Alaska talks.

“In Anchorage, he told President Trump: ‘There are certain nuances here, but I’ll take responsibility for them; I accept your proposals.’ That was already a compromise,” Lavrov said. “And now they’re telling us: ‘It’s not working out yet — let’s come up with another concession.’”

Despite the tensions, Lavrov emphasized that Moscow remains open to continued dialogue with the United States, noting that it is awaiting further engagement from Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during their next visit to Moscow.

He also criticized ongoing U.S. sanctions on Russia and said relations remain strained, pointing to unresolved issues such as the resumption of direct flights and the return of Russian diplomatic properties seized by U.S. authorities.

Lavrov added that Washington has also not placed any limits on the weapons it continues to supply to European allies for use in support of Ukraine.

-Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Andrew Osborn and Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Gareth Jones / Reuters