Trump said this afternoon that he still believes Putin wants peace in Ukraine despite the Kremlin’s launch of an aerial assault on the country overnight, which came days after the U.S. suspended all military aid to Ukraine and halted intelligence sharing with Kyiv.
“I’m finding it more difficult to deal with Ukraine,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office during remarks initially about the economy. “They don’t have the cards.”
The president added that “it may be easier dealing with Russia” on a final agreement to end the war, which he called “surprising, because they have all the problems.”
National security adviser Mike Waltz added that Trump has been “crystal clear” that all fighting needs to stop, and said the administration has had “good engagement” with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy.
Referring to the contentious Oval Office meeting Trump held with Zelenskyy last Friday that ended without the co-signing of a critical minerals deal, Waltz said, “We think we are going to get things back on track.”
Asked by a reporter if he believes Putin is taking advantage of the U.S. pause on military aid to Ukraine, Trump said he thinks Putin is “doing what anyone else would do.”
“I think he’s hitting them harder. He wants to get it ended. I think Ukraine wants to get it ended, but I don’t know,” Trump said.
Earlier today, Trump threatened to sanction Russia for continuing to bombard Ukraine as a way to pressure it to agree to a ceasefire.
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