The White House on Tuesday firmly denied claims that U.S. President Donald Trump encouraged Ukraine to carry out strikes on Russian territory, specifically Moscow. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that Trump’s remarks during a recent conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have been mischaracterized by the Financial Times, which reported that Trump privately urged Ukraine to escalate attacks against Russia.

"The president was merely asking a question, not encouraging further killing," Leavitt clarified. "President Trump is working tirelessly to stop the killing and end this war." She accused the Financial Times of “taking words wildly out of context” in an effort to generate attention.

Earlier in the day, the Financial Times published a report citing two individuals familiar with the conversation, claiming that Trump had asked Zelenskyy during a July 4 phone call whether Ukraine could strike Moscow and St. Petersburg if the U.S. supplied long-range weapons. The British newspaper reported that people briefed on the discussion described Trump’s remarks as an informal query rather than an official policy position.

Leavitt sought to distance the White House from any suggestion of U.S. support for strikes inside Russia, framing Trump’s comments as hypothetical and part of a broader inquiry rather than a directive. "The Financial Times is infamous for taking words out of context to increase viewership as their newspaper dies," she told Fox News.

NBC News has not independently confirmed the claims made by the Financial Times.

Context of the Claims

The report comes at a delicate moment in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with Kyiv pushing for more advanced weapons from Western allies to counter Russian attacks. Any suggestion that Washington is backing strikes deep inside Russia would carry significant diplomatic consequences, potentially escalating tensions further.

The White House’s quick denial aims to contain any fallout from the Financial Times article, reaffirming that President Trump remains focused on ending hostilities, not expanding them.