U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened massive tariffs and sanctions on Russian products if Vladimir Putin fails to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
“Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE. If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, directed at the Russian president.
“We can do it the easy way, or the hard way — and the easy way is always better,” Trump said.
The U.S. president repeatedly boasted about how quickly he would end Russia’s full-scale invasion after coming to power, while officials in Kyiv have urged that any peace deal should secure favorable terms for Ukraine.
Since his inauguration on Monday, Trump has escalated his rhetoric, telling reporters on Tuesday that Putin is in “big trouble” and that he should make a deal.
“[Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy told me he wants to make a deal, I don’t know if Putin does … He might not. I think he should make a deal. I think he’s destroying Russia by not making a deal,” Trump said in the Oval Office on the first day of his second presidency, referring to Russia’s failing economy and inflation.
He added that Putin couldn’t be happy with his slow progress in Ukraine. The Kremlin leader planned to capture Kyiv and other cities within 48 hours of his invasion, in February 2022.
“He’s grinding it out. Most people thought it would last about one week and now you’re into three years. It is not making him look good,” Trump said.
The U.S. president earlier also claimed that a meeting between him and Putin is being set up, though Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said no substantial preparations are underway.
Ukraine has pinned its hopes on Trump ending the almost three years of war and forcing Putin to the negotiating table.
“Trump is a businessman. He knows how to apply pressure,” Zelenskyy told a gathering of reporters Tuesday after delivering a fiery address to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, adding that he was “hopeful” about the new U.S. administration.
This story is being updated.
Trump tells Putin to end Ukraine war or face more sanctions
Source: Viral Showbiz Pinay
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