President Trump has warned that he is prepared to impose financial penalties on Russia if President Putin does not agree to a peace deal to end the conflict in Ukraine.
This statement comes after President Zelenskyy of Ukraine urged the US leader to take strong action if Putin did not support a 30-day ceasefire agreement negotiated between the US and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia.
The US, Ukraine, and European nations are anxiously awaiting Russia’s response to the ceasefire proposal. President Trump is planning to send representatives to Russia for discussions with Putin later this week, as the Kremlin has yet to publicly declare its stance on the ceasefire.
While Trump mentioned receiving positive messages about the ceasefire, he emphasized that actions speak louder than words. The White House confirmed that Trump’s envoy for the Middle East will be involved in further discussions on the matter.
“It’s up to Russia now,” Trump said from the White House. “Our people are going to Russia right now as we speak. And hopefully we can get a ceasefire from Russia.”
Trump added that he could “do things financially that would be very bad for Russia”.
He added, however: “I don’t want to do that, because I want to get peace.”
He added, “We haven’t spoken to him yet with substance, because we just found out. We’re going to know very soon. I’ve gotten some positive messages, but a positive message means nothing.”
“This is a very serious situation. This is a situation that could lead to world war three,” when asked whether he believed the Russian leader would hold to a ceasefire.
