As the new U.S. president seeks to ramp up pressure on Russia to begin negotiations with Kiev, President Donald Trump has threatened to impose taxes, tariffs and sanctions if a deal to end the war in Ukraine is not reached soon. threatened Russia with penalties.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, President Trump said Russia’s economy is failing and urged President Vladimir Putin to “make peace now and stop this stupid war.”
Without a deal, Trump said, “Russia will have no choice but to impose high levels of taxes, tariffs and sanctions on everything it sells to the United States and various other participating countries.”
The statement marks President Trump’s most detailed effort yet to end the war in Ukraine. During his campaign, he said if elected he would end the war “within 24 hours.”
“Let’s end this war that would never have started if I were president! We can do it the easy way, or we can do it the hard way, but the easy way is always better.” ” he said.
During his presidential campaign, Trump vowed to end the war before taking office. Asked on Monday how long that would take, he said: “We’ll have to talk to President Putin. We’ll have to figure it out.”
US media reported this week that President Trump had instructed special envoy Keith Kellogg to end the war within 100 days.
Russian officials have shown an unusual willingness to engage with President Trump in recent statements. Putin on Monday praised Russia’s readiness to “restore direct contacts with Russia.”
Putin appeared to be appealing to Trump’s apparent love of flattery, referring to the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. , twice described President Trump as a courageous person.
By contrast, President Trump’s rhetoric against Russia has grown harsher, making it the strongest public criticism of President Putin and his leader in history.
Asked about the Ukraine war shortly after taking office on Monday, President Trump said the Russian side was destroying Russia by refusing to negotiate a ceasefire.
“He can’t be excited about it. It’s not going very well,” he told reporters about Putin’s war. “Russia is bigger and has lost more soldiers, but you can’t run a country like that.”
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Nevertheless, President Trump said Wednesday that he and Putin “always had a very good relationship” and that he “never intended to hurt Russia.”
President Trump’s recent comments highlight the anxiety many in Moscow’s elite feel about his unpredictability, which has led to a cautious response since his reelection.
Alexander Kots, a prominent pro-war correspondent for the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, wrote on Telegram that Trump had given Putin an ultimatum.
“As I’ve said before, you better prepare for the worst. Soon, we’ll be looking back on Biden’s term with as much nostalgia as a thaw,” he said.
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Russia’s deputy foreign minister told state media early Wednesday that Moscow sees a “small opportunity” to reach an agreement with the new Trump administration.
However, the Kremlin indicated it was in no hurry to conclude a peace deal.
Russia’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky had a cautious response to President Trump’s comments. “It’s not just a matter of ending the war. First and foremost, it’s important to address the root causes of the Ukraine crisis,” he said.
“Therefore, we need to determine what ‘agreement’ means in President Trump’s understanding.”
In recent months, President Putin has repeatedly asserted an extremist stance towards ending the war, demanding that Ukraine not join NATO, adopt a neutral stance and undergo some degree of demilitarization. He has advocated for Western sanctions against Russia to be lifted and said he wants to maintain control of Crimea and four regions of Ukraine claimed by the Kremlin by 2022.
In a show of strength, Putin has held talks in recent days with two of his key allies in the fight against the West. He welcomed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to Moscow on Friday and spoke by video link with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Tuesday.
It is noteworthy that President Trump’s latest statements regarding the Ukraine war omit any mention of providing additional weapons to Kiev, instead indicating a shift toward deploying economic measures against Russia.
It is unclear whether President Trump’s direct threat of tariffs will be effective, given the shrinking trade relationship between the United States and Russia and the large number of sanctions already in place against Russia. Trade between the two countries in the first 11 months of 2024 was just $3.4 billion. In comparison, annual trade between the United States and Europe is approximately $1.5 trillion.
Trump administration officials have previously said the United States could further target Russia’s economy by imposing sanctions on Russia’s energy sector.
Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of the political analysis firm R.Politic, seems confident that the Russian leader has more resources than Ukraine, despite Trump’s attempts to force Putin to negotiate. said.
“A peace agreement on Russian terms would save considerable resources, but in the absence of such an agreement, President Putin is prepared to fight as long as necessary,” she wrote to X.
He also wrote that Russia’s current economic situation is unlikely to force Putin to negotiate with Ukraine. “If the Kremlin concludes that it cannot reach a favorable agreement with President Trump, it is likely to focus on prolonging the conflict,” he added.
