Weapons for Ukraine and threats of heavy tariffs - after Donald Trump's statements, the Russian leadership speaks of "very serious" signals from Washington.
The Russian leadership reacted with bewilderment to the latest statements by US President Donald Trump. "These statements are very serious. Some of them are addressed personally to President Putin," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, adding that Moscow needs time to analyze these statements.
"Russia is ready for negotiations"
The US's readiness to provide weapons to Ukraine, to be financed by other NATO countries, does not speak of efforts to achieve peace, Peskov also said. According to him, Ukraine would perceive this as a sign that the war is continuing.
Beyond that, Peskov assured that Russia is ready for direct negotiations with Ukraine. In recent months, two direct meetings between Russian and Ukrainian delegations have been held, but the Moscow negotiators have invariably made maximum demands, which Ukraine has always rejected. Therefore, a number of Western observers doubt the readiness of the Russian leadership for effective negotiations.
The US delivers, others pay
After about six months of mediation efforts, on Monday Donald Trump hardened his tone towards Russia. The US president announced new arms deliveries to Ukraine, for which other NATO countries will have to pay. These are mainly Patriot air defense systems to repel the increasingly massive Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly appealed for additional air defense for his country. Until now, many NATO countries have hesitated, fearing for their own defense capabilities. The delivery of new American weapons could put an end to these hesitations. As NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced, Germany, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, the United Kingdom and Canada have already agreed to finance weapons systems for Ukraine.
Tariffs against China and India?
Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Russia's trading partners if an agreement to end the war is not reached within 50 days. This would affect, for example, China and India, which import a lot of oil and natural gas from Russia.
Beijing's reaction was not long in coming: "Blackmail and pressure will not solve the problems", says the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
China defines itself as a neutral authority in the war against Ukraine. But it has never condemned Russian aggression.
Western countries accuse Beijing of providing crucial support to Moscow - for example, by supplying important goods and products and buying fuel from Russia.