Leavitt Says Putin Backs Trump’s Claim Russia-Ukraine War Was Preventable

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday reaffirmed President Donald Trump’s contention that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine had he been in office at the time, adding that Vladimir Putin has “said that himself.” The remark came during a tense briefing exchange in which Leavitt pressed Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich to state whether she accepted the claim; Heinrich replied, “Probably.” Leavitt’s comments followed a separate line of questioning from NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell about a hot-mic moment the previous day in which Trump told European leaders that Putin “wants to make a deal” with him. The president was recorded making the aside shortly before meeting at the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several European counterparts to discuss prospects for ending the three-year-old conflict. The press secretary offered no details on potential negotiations but said Trump believes open dialogue and U.S. leverage have prompted both Moscow and Kyiv to talk directly for the first time in years. She emphasized that any settlement would require concessions from both sides, adding that the administration views its recent summit with Putin in Alaska as evidence that “the United States is respected again.”