Trump says Putin is ‘playing with fire’

The US president has indicated he is weighing additional sanctions on Russia, potentially as soon as this week.

Donald Trump’s latest comments came after he called Vladimir Putin “CRAZY” over the weekend following a mass Russian air attack on Kyiv. Picture: Kremlin Pool/Ukrainian Armed Forces/AP

President Trump expressed renewed frustrations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying the Russian leader was “playing with fire” as peace talks with Ukraine have sputtered.

“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realise is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire!” Trump wrote Tuesday on social media.

The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump over the weekend indicated he was considering sanctions against Moscow, which people familiar with the matter said could come as early as this week. “He’s killing a lot of people,” Trump said Sunday of Putin. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him. What the hell happened to him?”

Trump has been unable to coax significant concessions from Putin on a negotiated peace with Ukraine, and the Russian leader has intensified the war recently.

Hours after Trump’s comments Sunday, Russia launched its largest-ever drone-and-missile assault on Ukraine overnight into Monday. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched more than 350 explosive drones and at least nine cruise missiles. The Russians characterised the strikes as retaliation for Ukrainian bombings within Russian territory.

As a candidate in 2024, Trump promised to quickly end the war, citing his relationship with Putin. But as progress has stalled on talks, Trump has grown increasingly frustrated and at times has directed social-media posts at Putin. A month ago, amid strikes on Kyiv, Trump pleaded, “Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!”

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) wrote on Tuesday on X that he thought Trump was sincere in thinking his friendship with Putin would end the war. Now, he added, it was time for sanctions strong enough that the Russia leader “KNOWS ‘game over.’”

Trump is also considering abandoning peace negotiations altogether if a final push to reach a deal falls through, people familiar with his thinking said. It is unclear what would happen if the US retreated from the process and whether Trump would continue to provide military support to Ukraine.

Wall Street Journal