WASHINGTON (AP) — Following months of irritation over failed war-ending discussions, President Donald Trump hardened his position toward Moscow on Monday by threatening Russia with high tariffs and announcing a revitalized route for American weaponry to reach Ukraine.
The most recent actions show that the Republican president, who pledged to end the conflict that Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated when he invaded Ukraine three years ago, is taking a more flexible stance. Trump has been more irritated with Putin, but he previously targeted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he was hesitant to make concessions.
Trump claimed, “I have very nice conversations with him, and then the missiles go off at night.” It just keeps going on and on and on, he grumbled.
Trump declared that if no peace agreement was achieved within 50 days, he will impose harsh tariffs. He called them secondary tariffs, which would target Russia’s trading partners in an attempt to isolate Moscow in the international economy, but he gave few specifics on how they would be put into effect.
Trump also promised that European allies would purchase billions of dollars’ worth of American military hardware to be shipped to Ukraine, restocking the embattled nation’s arsenal. He and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte made the announcement in the Oval Office.
Patriot air defense systems, a primary goal for Ukraine as it defends against Russian drones and missiles, are part of the proposal.
When the Pentagon recently halted supplies due to worries that U.S. stockpiles were running low, questions were raised about Trump’s commitment to supplying Ukraine.
According to Rutte, among of the countries that will purchase goods for Ukraine are Germany, Finland, Canada, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Denmark. Speed is crucial in this situation, he added, and he proposed that certain weapons be sent to Ukraine immediately and then replaced with American acquisitions.
Trump exasperated with Putin
Trump frequently claimed that Russia was more willing than Ukraine to strike a peace agreement, and he has long boasted of his cordial connection with Putin. In addition, he referred to Zelenskyy as a tyrant without elections and charged him with extending the conflict.
But Trump’s forbearance was worn thin by Russia’s unrelenting assault on Ukraine’s civilian areas. Trump remarked in a social media tweet the following month that the Russian leader has gone completely insane after urging Putin to STOP! firing lethal barrages on Kyiv in April.
Zelenskyy spoke with retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, in Kyiv while Rutte was in Washington.
Zelenskyy claimed that he and Kellogg had a fruitful discussion regarding bolstering Ukrainian air defenses, collaborating on arms production and buying American weapons alongside European nations, and the potential for more stringent international sanctions against the Kremlin.
Zelenskyy stated on Telegram, “We hope for the leadership of the United States, because it is clear that Moscow will not stop unless its ambitions are stopped by force.”
Talks on sending Patriot missiles
Ukraine’s air defenses are having difficulty fending off Russia’s bombardment of Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv, with hundreds of drones and ballistic and cruise missiles. With 232 fatalities and 1,343 injuries, June saw the most monthly civilian casualties in the previous three years, according to the U.N. human rights mission in Ukraine.
Russia’s larger army is simultaneously attempting to retake Ukrainian defenders on portions of the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line.
Trump affirmed that the European Union will reimburse the United States for the different highly advanced weapons and that the United States is sending Ukraine more desperately needed Patriot air defense missiles.
The US military-industrial complex was the sole benefactor of Trump’s plan, according to prominent Russian legislator Konstantin Kosachev.
In Berlin on Monday, government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius announced that Germany has offered to finance two Patriot systems. Ukraine has already received three of the nation’s Patriot systems.
To meet with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius traveled to Washington on Monday.
Pistorius told reporters, “We are committed to taking on more responsibility for Europe’s defense and deterrence, while acknowledging that the United States of America’s contribution is still essential to our collective security.”
Weapons flowing at a record level
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a close supporter of Trump, stated on Sunday that the war is approaching a turning point as Trump expresses increasing interest in assisting Ukraine in retaliating against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Graham told CBS Face the Nation that you’ll see weapons flowing at a record level, despite Trump’s earlier dismissal of the endeavor as a waste of American taxpayer dollars.
“Playing Trump is one of Putin’s biggest miscalculations,” he remarked. And you can see that a tremendous effort will be made to get Putin to the negotiating table in the days and weeks ahead.
Putin’s ambassador for foreign investment, Kirill Dmitriev, who participated in discussions with American officials in Saudi Arabia in February, rejected what he claimed were attempts to sour relations between Washington and Moscow.
In a post on Telegram, Dmitriev stated that constructive communication between the US and Russia is more successful than futile attempts at pressure. Titanic efforts will be made to stop this conversation by any means necessary, but it will go on.
Economic pressure
Trump suggested imposing further tariffs on Russia, but he questioned if bipartisan legislation would be enough to hurt the nation even more.
He remarked, “I don’t think we need it.” It might be rather helpful. We shall see.
The law imposes 500% tariffs and toughens restrictions on goods coming from nations that purchase Russian gas, oil, and other exports. Trump suggested unilaterally enacting 100% tariffs on Monday.
He said, “I use trade for a lot of things.” However, it works well for resolving conflicts.
China has purchased 47% of Russia’s crude oil exports since the European Union prohibited it on December 5, 2022, with India coming in second at 38%. According to the Centre for Research and Clean Air, a Finnish charity that monitors the energy sector, Turkey and the EU have each contributed 6%.
The Council on Foreign Relations’ senior scholar in China studies, Zongyuan Zoe Liu, was skeptical that tariffs would alter the direction of the conflict.
He claimed that Russia has created an agile shadow fleet and that oil is fungible. Therefore, enforcement would be difficult.
However, depending on how they are applied, the tariffs may still have a significant impact.
In addition to the import levies already in place, imposing a 100% tariff on China would effectively stop trade between the two biggest economies in the world, China and the United States.
