President Donald Trump said Friday he may impose new sanctions on Russia within two weeks if there is no movement toward ending the war in Ukraine. His warning came just days after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
“I’m going to make a decision as to what we do,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It’s going to be a very important decision, and that’s whether or not it’s massive sanctions or massive tariffs or both, or we do nothing and say it’s your fight.”
The comments followed a Russian strike earlier in the week on a U.S.-owned factory in Ukraine. The attack sparked a fire and injured several workers. “I’m not happy about it, and I’m not happy about anything having to do with that war,” Trump said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also spoke Friday, accusing Moscow of blocking efforts to set up a direct meeting with Putin. “The meeting is one of the components of how to end the war,” Zelensky said in Kyiv at a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. “And since they don’t want to end it, they will look for space to avoid it.”
In an interview with NBC News, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed the possibility of an imminent summit, citing one major roadblock: the lack of an agenda. “Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky when the agenda would be ready,” Lavrov stated. “And this agenda is not ready at all.”
Trump, asked about Lavrov’s remarks, compared the two leaders to “oil and vinegar.” He added, “We’re going to see if Putin and Zelensky will be working together.”
While at the White House, Trump made a point of showing reporters a red-carpet photo of himself with Putin in Alaska. He then floated the idea that Putin was interested in attending the 2026 World Cup in the United States. “He may be coming, and he may not, depending on what happens,” Trump remarked, making no mention of the fact that Russia is currently banned from international soccer.
Putin, meanwhile, praised Trump during a visit to a nuclear research center. “With the arrival of President Trump, I think that a light at the end of the tunnel has finally loomed,” Putin said. He described their Alaska talks as “very good, meaningful and frank.”
Russia’s war in Ukraine has inflicted a staggering human cost: thousands of civilians are dead, millions have fled their homes, and the combined military death toll is now estimated to be over a million. The brutal fighting shows no sign of stopping, with much of the focus now on Russia’s systematic attempts to cripple Ukraine’s energy grid.
Russia is still demanding that Ukraine surrender territory in its east and south. In response, Zelensky has dropped his call for a ceasefire before negotiations, but insists talks are off the table as long as his country is being invaded.
At Friday’s event in Kyiv, Zelensky and Rutte said they also discussed long-term security guarantees for Ukraine. Zelensky said they should resemble NATO’s Article 5, which treats an attack on one member as an attack on all. Rutte said NATO and Ukraine are now working on “robust security guarantees” that could deter any future Russian aggression.
