President Trump said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to make peace, even though Russian forces are ramping up their attacks on Ukraine, while Mr. Trump believes it’s getting “more difficult” for him to deal with Ukraine.
Speaking with reporters Friday in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said he thinks the U.S. is “doing very well” with its negotiations with Russia on ending the three-year war.
“Right now they’re bombing the hell out of Ukraine,” Mr. Trump said of the Russians. “I’m finding it more difficult, frankly, to deal with Ukraine. They don’t have the cards.”
Officials from the U.S. and Ukraine are meeting in Saudi Arabia next week to get the peace deal between Russia and Ukraine back on track. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will attend those discussions.
National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said leaders from both countries have said that only Mr. Trump can get the war ended.
When asked if Mr. Putin is taking advantage of the U.S. pause on intelligence and aid to Ukraine, Mr. Trump said he thinks the Russian leader is “doing what anybody else would do.”
“I think he wants to get it stopped and settled, and I think he’s hitting [Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy] harder than he’s been hitting him,” Mr. Trump said. “And I think probably anybody in that position would be doing that right now.”
Mr. Trump said in order for the U.S. to provide Ukraine with air defenses to defend itself from Russia, he needs “to know that they want to settle.”
“I don’t know that they want to settle. If they don’t want to settle, we’re out of there because we want them to settle,” he said.
He warned Russia Friday in an X post that he will put sanctions and tariffs on Russia if Mr. Putin doesn’t stop “pounding” Ukraine.
“Based on the fact that Russia is absolutely ‘pounding’ Ukraine on the battlefield right now, I am strongly considering large scale Banking Sanctions, Sanctions, and Tariffs on Russia until a Cease Fire and FINAL SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT ON PEACE IS REACHED,” Mr. Trump posted Friday on Truth Social.
“To Russia and Ukraine, get to the table right now, before it is too late,” he said.
