Putin Warns Trump to Evacuate Americans From Ukraine as Russia Threatens Systematic Kyiv Strikes on May 25

According to Kyiv Independent and other reports, Russia's President Vladimir Putin warned the U.S. on May 25 (Monday) to evacuate Americans from Ukraine via a high-level diplomatic channel. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov requested a call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and relayed Putin's message, threatening a "systematic" bombardment of Kyiv targeting "decision-making centres and command posts." Rubio confirmed he relayed Putin's warning directly to President Trump, characterizing it as a "threat of escalation."

The Kremlin urged foreign nationals and diplomatic staff to leave the capital immediately. However, Western allies rejected the evacuation demand. The European Union's ambassador to Ukraine stated the EU would not leave Kyiv, saying "Russia wants fear, panic, isolation of Ukraine. It will not work." France also signaled it would not comply with evacuation calls, with a French foreign ministry spokesperson stating: "We're used to Putin's threats. It is out of the question to evacuate." The U.S. has elected not to launch a full diplomatic evacuation.