US President Donald Trump said he was “very angry” at Russian President Vladimir Putin and threatened “secondary tariffs” on buyers of Russian oil if Moscow refuses a ceasefire with Ukraine.
In comments reported by NBC News, Trump said he was “pissed off” at Putin for casting doubt on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s legitimacy as a negotiating partner, and threatened curbs on “all oil coming out of Russia.”
He later added that he did not think the Russian president would “go back on his word.”
Photo: EPA-EFE / Russian Ministry of Defense
While Trump appeared to temper his remarks, the threats mark a significant change of tone for Washington and suggest a possible souring in relations with his Russian counterpart over the pace of ceasefire talks.
Before taking office, Trump said he could resolve the war quickly, but the conflict rages on more than two months later.
“I certainly wouldn’t want to put secondary tariffs on Russia,” Trump later clarified in comments to reporters on Air Force One, adding that he was “disappointed” with some of Putin’s recent comments on Zelenskiy.
“He’s supposed to be making a deal with him, whether you like him or don’t like him. So I wasn’t happy with that. But I think he’s going to be good,” he said.
Trump’s frustration was sparked by comments Putin made on Friday that implicitly challenged Zelenskiy’s legitimacy by proposing the UN should take over Ukraine with a temporary government overseen by the US and possibly even some European countries.
The Kremlin yesterday said that Putin remained open to contacts with Trump.
“If necessary, their conversation will be organized very quickly,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to the state-run Tass news agency, though he said no call had been scheduled yet.
Peskov also said that Russia was continuing to work with the US to build bilateral relations, according to Tass.
Meanwhile, Trump maintained pressure on Zelenskiy to agree to a deal to give the US access to Ukraine’s resources.
“He’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal and if he does that he’s got some problems — big, big problems,” Trump said. “If he’s looking to renegotiate the deal, he’s got big problems.”
Russia is one of the world’s three largest oil producers, meaning any attempt to punish purchases of Russian supplies could have a far-reaching effect on the oil market, and any disruptions could add to inflationary pressures.
Nevertheless, with a week of tariffs and other measures to evaluate — and the uncertainty that Russian supplies would really be hit with levies, oil barely moved.
Should the US press ahead, India and China, which have become the key buyers of discounted Russian barrels since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, would face particular pressure. Russian crude exports hit a five-month high last month and US sanctions on Russia’s oil tanker fleet are showing signs of faltering.
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