President Trump made it clear on Monday that he no longer has patience with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, expressing how unhappy he is with the ongoing war in Ukraine. He declared that Russia now has between 10 and 12 days to bring the war to an end or face a fresh round of sanctions from the United States.
Earlier this month, Trump had issued a warning to the Kremlin about possible “very severe tariffs” if a peace agreement was not reached within 50 days. But speaking on Monday, he said he was no longer willing to wait that long and would now enforce a tighter deadline.
“From today, the new deadline will be around 10 or 12 days,” Trump said during his visit to Scotland, where he met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “There’s no point in giving more time when we are not seeing any movement at all.”
Threat of Sanctions and Tariffs
Trump added that if Russia failed to cooperate, new penalties would be introduced, including tariffs and possibly measures that target countries doing business with Russia.
He explained that he would prefer not to place more burdens on ordinary Russian citizens, but the situation was growing worse. Although he has threatened Russia several times, he has not yet acted on those warnings.
Placing fresh tariffs would mark a new direction for the White House, especially after Russia was left out of the sanctions introduced against other countries in April.
The idea of targeting other nations that continue to trade with Russia, like China and India, could raise new concerns among America’s trade partners due to their involvement in Russian oil and gas imports.
A Change in Tone
After returning to the White House in January, Trump claimed he could stop the Ukraine war instantly. But Russian troops have kept advancing through the eastern and northern parts of Ukraine. At first, Trump seemed to favor Putin’s side. He criticized Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky many times and paused the shipment of American weapons to Ukraine.
But everything started to change in April. Ukraine signed an agreement with the U.S. to share mineral resources. As Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities increased, Trump adjusted his tone.
He began to respond to pressure from European leaders and NATO officials, agreed to resume sending weapons to Ukraine, and spoke more firmly against Putin.
Ukraine Responds
Shortly after Trump announced the shorter deadline, Ukrainian leaders reacted quickly. Andriy Yermak, the top aide to President Zelensky, posted online that Trump’s comments were a clear message that he supports the idea of achieving peace through strong action.
It’s still unclear whether Dmitry Medvedev’s online response represents the official position of the Russian government. In the past, the U.S. government has often dismissed Medvedev’s threats, especially those involving nuclear weapons.
