US President Donald Trump announced yesterday, at a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House, that he would adopt a tougher approach against Russia if an agreement on a ceasefire in Ukraine was not reached within 50 days. The new position of the American leader is a leading topic in the Western press, writes BTA.
Trump threatened Russia with "harsh" tariffs and other financial sanctions if the war in Ukraine does not end soon and promised to send more weapons to Kiev through NATO allies, writes the British newspaper. "Financial Times".
Trump told Rutte in the Oval Office that he was "very unhappy" with Moscow over the lack of progress towards an agreement to end the conflict. "We are very unhappy" with Russia," Trump said. "I am disappointed with President (Vladimir) Putin because I thought we were going to make a deal two months ago," the American leader added. "We will impose very heavy tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days, tariffs of about 100%, you would call them secondary tariffs," he added. The tariffs will be "biting" and "very, very strong", Trump also said, quoted by "Financial Times".
Washington can take advantage of its role as the center of global finance to remove individuals and countries from the international economy through its extensive sanctions program. Secondary tariffs or sanctions would increase pressure on Moscow through punitive measures against legal entities or countries that do business with Russia, the British newspaper explains.
There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin after Trump's statement yesterday, but Konstantin Kosachov, deputy speaker of the upper house of the Russian parliament, wrote on social networks that "Europeans will have to continue to pay (for arms supplies to Kiev) ..., with the only beneficiary being the American defense industry," adds "Financial Times". "In 50 days, a lot can change on the battlefield and in the moods of the US and NATO leaders. However, our mood is not affected by words at all," added Kosachov, quoted by the British publication.
In the end, Trump's "really big statement" about Russia turned out to be less than many had hoped, writes the German publication "Spiegel". Donald Trump yesterday once again decided to show the world his position of power. When he finished his statement, however, prices on the Moscow Stock Exchange had risen by several percent. Apparently, Russia expected something worse, the publication commented. Yes, Ukraine will probably receive the military equipment it urgently needs in the coming weeks. However, Vladimir Putin has once again bought himself more time, believes "Spiegel".
Trump once again emphasized that this is his predecessor Joe Biden's war. However, the Republican president promised to end the conflict in Ukraine. A promise he repeated many times, giving himself a deadline of 24 hours, but never kept, the magazine recalls. According to Rutte, however, this time it must be achieved with the help of "huge quantities" of American weapons. However, the United States will not deliver them directly to Ukraine, as they did under Biden. According to Rutte, a number of NATO member states, primarily Germany, but also Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Great Britain, the Netherlands and Canada, have expressed their readiness to deliver American weapons to Ukraine from their own stocks as quickly as possible. To replenish their depleted stocks, these countries will buy military equipment from the United States, "Spiegel" also writes.
For Trump, this is mainly "a good deal". This is also a decisive signal to the followers of his slogan "Make America Great Again", who see the Ukrainian conflict as an "endless war", needlessly consuming billions of dollars from American taxpayers, the German magazine notes.
Neither Rutte nor Trump gave a clear answer to the question of what weapons will be delivered, in what quantities and who exactly will send them, continues "Spiegel". "Everything" and "the best" will be delivered, including "Patriot" air defense systems, Trump said. Rutte noted that several countries in the Alliance want to provide Kiev with missiles and ammunition. "This is really something big", added the NATO Secretary General, quoted by "Spiegel".
"Behind Trump's decisive rhetoric on Russia hides doubts and missing details", the American newspaper "New York Times" headlines.
President Trump's new plan to send weapons to Ukraine while threatening Russia's trading partners with tough punitive measures represents a dramatic shift in the US leader's stance on the war, but key details remain unclear.
Trump said on Tuesday that Patriot air defense systems and other weapons would be sent to Ukraine "soon." The US president said Washington would sell European countries that provide military equipment to Kiev the same weapons to replenish their stockpiles.
But Pentagon officials later said many details were still being worked out. Experts have questioned the credibility of Trump's threat to impose 100 percent tariffs on Russia's trading partners if Russian President Putin does not agree to a ceasefire within 50 days, the "New York Times" added.
China's bilateral trade with Russia amounts to nearly $250 billion a year. This includes huge amounts of oil imports, and carrying out the threat would put Trump in conflict with Beijing, the newspaper predicted. According to analysts, it is unlikely that the Republican president would risk renewing the confrontation with the world's second-largest economy over Ukraine. Trump has long argued that the fate of Ukraine is not vital to the United States, the "New York Times" also wrote. Trump is known for setting deadlines that he doesn't meet, the American newspaper points out.
Trump was pleased with the agreement reached with Ukraine in April to share its minerals with the United States, the publication recalls. Like the minerals deal, the plan that Trump announced yesterday promises unexpected revenues for the United States through the purchase of American weapons from Europe. At the same time, Trump, who has long questioned the numerous arms deliveries and allocation of funds to Ukraine, is securing himself protection from accusations that he is changing course and throwing more money at the war.
Jennifer Kavanagh, a senior fellow at the American think tank "Defense Priorities", which advocates a restrained military policy abroad, told the "New York Times" that Putin rejected peace proposals because "he is not ready to stop fighting". "He assesses, I think correctly, that Russia has the advantage on the battlefield and that the United States and Europe can do little to pressure him", explained Kavanagh. "More aid to Ukraine is unlikely to lead to a significant change in the military balance, and Putin is prepared to bear more sanctions", the American expert added.
In addition, Kavanagh says that current arms stocks in Europe and the United States limit the possibilities of sending weapons to Ukraine in the near future. According to her, Europe, whose defense industrial base is much smaller than America's, can order new weapons, but their delivery could take months or even years, notes the "New York Times".