President Donald Trump expressed doubt Saturday that Russia’s Vladimir Putin truly wanted to end the war in Ukraine, casting fresh skepticism over the possibility of a peace agreement. Just one day earlier, Trump had said Ukraine and Russia were “very close to a deal.”
“There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days,” Trump wrote in a social media post as he traveled back to the United States following his attendance at Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican, where he briefly met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Trump also suggested the possibility of new sanctions targeting Russia.
“It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!” Trump posted.
Trump’s shifting tone came as he and his senior aides intensified efforts to forge an agreement to end the war that began when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
These new remarks stood in stark contrast to Trump’s optimistic assessment from a day earlier, when he had declared that both sides were “very close to a deal” after his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Putin in Moscow.
The encounter between Trump and Zelenskyy at the Vatican marked their first face-to-face meeting since their heated argument during an Oval Office meeting at the White House in late February, which had resulted in a temporary suspension of U.S. military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine.
A few days after imposing the pause, Trump announced that he was “strongly considering” additional sanctions and tariffs against Russia to push Putin toward serious negotiations. Although Trump later unveiled new global tariffs, he notably left Russia off the list — a move that even some of his closest Republican allies had urged him to reconsider.
On Friday, U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, called on Trump to “put the toughest of sanctions on Putin,” arguing that there was “clear evidence that he is playing America as a patsy.”
This marked the second time in a matter of days that Trump publicly rebuked Putin, something he rarely did.
On Thursday, Trump had directly urged the Russian leader to “STOP!” following a deadly barrage of attacks on Kyiv.
After their brief meeting Saturday, Zelenskyy’s office indicated that plans were being made for another conversation later that day. However, Trump proceeded straight to Rome’s airport after the funeral and boarded Air Force One for the flight back to the United States.
Zelenskyy’s spokesman, Serhii Nykyforov, explained that the two leaders did not meet again due to scheduling constraints.
After the funeral, Zelenskyy posted on social media, calling it a “good meeting.”
“We discussed a lot one on one. Hoping for results on everything we covered. Protecting lives of our people. Full and unconditional ceasefire. Reliable and lasting peace that will prevent another war from breaking out,” Zelenskyy wrote. He also met Saturday with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results. Thank you,” Zelenskyy added.
The White House characterized the Trump-Zelenskyy meeting as “very productive.” The discussion, lasting about 15 minutes, took place inside St. Peter’s Basilica, where Pope Francis had frequently called for peace in Ukraine.
The Vatican had long offered to serve as a mediator in peace talks, and Francis had regularly advocated for dialogue and an end to the violence. That Trump and Zelenskyy met privately on the marbled floors of the Basilica, on the day of the pope’s funeral, seemed a fitting tribute to those calls.
After arriving in Italy late Friday, Trump had posted on social media that Russia and Ukraine should engage in “very high level talks” to end the war.
Neither Putin nor Zelenskyy immediately responded to Trump’s proposal for direct negotiations.
Trump had continued to pressure both sides to reach a peace deal quickly. While Zelenskyy had agreed to a U.S.-brokered plan proposing an initial 30-day ceasefire, Russia had refused to commit and continued launching attacks inside Ukraine.
Putin had not attended Pope Francis’ funeral, as he faced an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes committed during the invasion.
On Friday night, Zelenskyy stated that “very significant meetings may take place” in the coming days and repeated his call for an unconditional ceasefire.
“Real pressure on Russia is needed so that they accept either the American proposal to cease fire and move towards peace, or our proposal — whichever one can truly work and ensure a reliable, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire, and then — a dignified peace and security guarantees,” Zelenskyy said.
“Diplomacy must succeed. And we are doing everything to make diplomacy truly meaningful and finally effective.”
The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy came shortly after Trump had issued his most explicit comments yet about the need for Ukraine to cede territory to Russia in order to end the conflict. In a Time magazine interview published Friday, Trump said, “Crimea will stay with Russia.”
Russia had seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, years before the full-scale invasion in 2022. Although Zelenskyy had remained determined to reclaim Crimea and other occupied regions, Trump described that goal as unrealistic.
Since launching its 2022 invasion, Russia had also occupied territory in Ukraine’s Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions.
Speaking about Crimea during the interview, which had been conducted at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said, “everybody understands that it’s been with them for a long time,” referring to Russia.
{Matzav.com}