Washington will also be looking into the possibility of sending additional weapons to Kiev, the US president has said
US President Donald Trump has said that Washington could impose more sanctions on Russia if it refuses to engage in talks on settling the Ukraine conflict.
During his Tuesday press conference, Trump was asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin’s reluctance to negotiate will lead to additional curbs against Moscow – on top of the thousands of restrictions already introduced under Joe Biden.
“Sounds likely,” he replied.
Trump, who had been extremely critical of Biden for supplying military aid to Ukraine, did not rule out the possibility of Washington sending more weapons to Kiev during his tenure, saying: “Well, we will look into that.”
However, he insisted that Brussels should “equalize” with Washington when it comes to the amount of support it provides to Ukraine. “We are in there for $200 billion more than the EU. I mean, what are we, stupid? I guess the answer is ‘yes.’ They must think so,” the president said.
He again expressed a readiness to engage in discussions with Putin to end the fighting between Moscow and Kiev. “We are talking to [Ukrainian leader] Zelensky. We are gonna be talking with President Putin very soon and we will see how it all happens,” Trump stressed.
The US president called Putin “smart,” suggesting that the Ukraine conflict started because the Russian leader had “disrespected” Biden.
Trump also said that he’d urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to join efforts to stop the hostilities between Russia and Ukraine during their recent phone call.
“He has not done very much on that. He has got a lot of… power, like we have a lot of power. I said: ‘You ought to get it settled.’ We did discuss it,” he claimed.
During a Russian National Security Council meeting on Monday, Putin commended Trump’s intention to resume contacts between Russia and the US that had been halted under Biden. However, he stressed that dialogue can only happen on an “equal and mutually respectful basis.”
The authorities in Moscow have noted statements by the new US president and his team about their desire to restore communication links and “about the need to do everything to prevent World War Three,” the Russian leader stressed. “Of course, we welcome such an attitude and congratulate the elected US president on taking office,” he added.
The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Putin and Xi held a phone conversation, during which they discussed the Ukraine conflict, Western sanctions and Russia’s potential engagement with the Trump administration.
