- Trump threatens secondary sanctions against Russia in 50 days.
- Saying up to 17 Patriot batteries could be available ‘very soon’.
- Russian markets are rising and suggesting relief over delay.
US President Donald Trump announced new weapons for Ukraine Monday and threatened to hit buyers of Russian exports with sanctions, unless Russia accepts a 50 -day peace agreement, a major shift in politics made by frustration with Moscow.
Trump sat side by side with NATO Secretary Secretary Mark Rutte in the Oval Office and told journalists he was disappointed with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Billions of dollars in weapons would be distributed to Ukraine, he said.
“We’re going to make top-of-the-line weapons and they’ll be sent to NATO,” Trump said, adding that Washington’s NATO allies would pay for weapons.
Weapons will include Patriot Air Defense missiles, which Ukraine has tried to defend its cities from Russian air strikes.
“It’s a full complement to the batteries,” Trump said. “We’re going to get some coming very soon, within a few days … A few of the countries that have patriots will swap over and will replace the patriots with those they have.”
Some or all 17 patriot batteries ordered by other countries could be sent to Ukraine “very quickly,” he said.
His threat to impose so -called secondary sanctions against Russia, if implemented, would be a major shift in Western sanctions policy.
Legislators from both political parties in the United States are pushing for a bill that would approve such measures aimed at other countries buying Russian oil.
Throughout the more than three -year -old war, Western countries have cut off most of their own financial ties to Moscow, but have stated from taking steps that would limit Russia from selling its oil elsewhere. It has enabled Moscow to continue to serve hundreds of billions of dollars from shipping oil to buyers like China and India.
“We want to make secondary tariffs,” Trump said. “If we don’t have a 50 -day deal, it’s very simple and they’ll be at 100%.”
An official in the White House said Trump was referring to 100% duty on Russian goods as well as secondary sanctions against other countries buying its exports.
Grade period
Still, Trump’s notice of a 50-day repayment period was met with relief by investors in Russia, where the ruble recovered from previous losses and stock markets increased.
“Trump performed under the market expectations. He gave 50 days when Russian management can come up with something and expand the negotiating track. In addition, Trump likes to postpone and extend such deadlines,” said analyst Artyom Nikolayev of Invest Era, an economic information company.
Trump, who returned to power this year and promised a quick end to the war, said his shift was motivated by increasing frustration over Putin, as he said, had spoken of peace, but continued to beat Ukrainian cities.
“In fact, we probably had four times a deal. And then the deal wouldn’t happen because bombs would be thrown out that night and you would say we’re not making any deals,” Trump said.
Since returning to the White House, Trump has sought approximation with Moscow and spoken several times with Putin.
His administration has been withdrawn from pro-Ukrainian policies such as the support of Kyiv’s membership of NATO and demanding Russia withdrawn from all Ukrainian territory.
But so far, Putin has not yet accepted a proposal from Trump for an unconditional truce, which was quickly approved by Kyiv. In recent days, Russia has seen hundreds of drones to attack Ukrainian cities.
Trump waited his frustration last week and said, “We’ll get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin.”
Earlier Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy held conversations with Trump’s envoy Keith Kellogg.
Zelenskiy said he had discussed “the way to peace and what we can practically do together to bring it closer”, including “Strengthen Ukraine’s air defense, joint production and purchase of defense weapons in collaboration with Europe.”
An Air-Raid alarm was declared in Kiev shortly after Zelenskiy’s conversations with Kellogg took place.
Separately on Monday, Zelenskiy said he would replace his long -standing Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal with Shmyhal’s first deputy, Yulia Svyrydenko, in “a transformation of the executive branch”. Her appointment requires parliamentary approval.
Svyryndenko, 39, is an economist and has previously served as Minister of Economic Development and Trade and as a deputy head of Zelenskiy’s office. She played a key role in the negotiations between Kyiv and Washington on a mineral agreement.
Russia, which began its full -scale invasion in February 2022, holds about one fifth of Ukraine. Its forces are slowly moving on in eastern Ukraine, and Moscow shows no evidence of giving up his most important war targets.
