Russian aide: Trump 'playing along' with allies

US President Donald Trump's tough remarks about Russia following meetings with foreign leaders may sometimes be an effort to "play along" with his interlocutors, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said Thursday in an interview.

Asked whether Trump consistently makes harsh statements about Moscow, Ushakov disagreed.

"Well, not all the time. Yes, he talks with various leaders at the (UN) General Assembly. To some extent, maybe he's playing along with them, I don't know. But the picture is much more complex, I'd say," he said.

Ushakov added that Moscow evaluates US positions based not only on public comments but also on private diplomatic exchanges.

"You know that there are public statements, and then there are contacts through closed channels. And we take into account the signals transmitted both publicly and through closed channels. All of this is taken into account in our position," he said.

Trump has held several high-level meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where Russia's war in Ukraine remained among the main topics of discussion.

The US president said in a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that NATO should shoot down Russian jets if they enter the skies of member countries.