Trump threatens Russia with tariffs if war on Ukraine isn't resolved within 50 days

President Donald Trump said on Monday he would punish Russia with tariffs if there isn't a deal to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days.

The Republican president made the announcement during an Oval Office meeting with Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

"We’re going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days," Trump said. He did not provide specifics on how the tariffs would be implemented. "I use trade for a lot of things," he added. "But it's great for settling wars.”

Meanwhile, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Monday, as anticipation grew over a possible shift in the Trump administration's policy on the three-year war.

Rutte also planned to hold talks with US Defence Secretary Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as well as members of Congress.

Trump made quickly stopping the war one of his diplomatic priorities, and he has increasingly expressed frustration about Russian President Vladimir Putin's unbudging stance on US-led peace efforts. Trump has long boasted of his friendly relationship with Putin, and after taking office in January repeatedly said that Russia was more willing than Ukraine to reach a peace deal.

'DICTATOR WITHOUT ELECTIONS'

At the same time, Trump accused Zelensky of prolonging the war and called him a "dictator without elections." But Russia's relentless onslaught against civilian areas of Ukraine wore down Trump's patience.

In April, Trump urged Putin to "STOP!" launching deadly barrages on Kyiv, and the following month said in a social media post that the Russian leader " has gone absolutely CRAZY!" as the bombardments continued.

"I am very disappointed with President Putin, I thought he was somebody that meant what he said," Trump said late Sunday. "He'll talk so beautifully and then he'll bomb people at night. We don't like that."

Zelensky said he and Trump's envoy, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, had "a productive conversation" about strengthening Ukrainian air defenses, joint arms production and purchasing US weapons in conjunction with European countries, as well as the possibility of tighter international sanctions on the Kremlin.

Associated Press