European leaders who spoke with US President Donald Trump after his phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin were surprised by Washington's reluctance to impose new sanctions on Moscow, the British newspaper Financial Times reported, citing a source.
According to the media outlet, European leaders were amazed by the way Trump described the agreements reached with Putin. As the publication notes, it follows from the US president's words that he is "not ready to put more pressure" on Russia.
After talking with Putin, Trump held a phone call with the leaders of the European Union countries and Volodymyr Zelensky. It was attended by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Trump later told reporters at the White House that he was not tightening sanctions on Russia because there was a chance of a deal in Ukraine.
“I think there is a chance that something can be done. If we do that, we could make things worse,” Trump said. But he did not rule out that “there could come a time when that will happen”.