Trump ‘very angry’ with Putin over Ukraine

Donald Trump called NBC to threaten secondary sanctions on Russia after Vladimir Putin questioned Volodymyr Zelensky’s future as a leader - something that Trump himself has done.

Donald Trump has said he’s “very angry, pissed off” with Russian leader Vladimir Putin as Ukraine ceasefire talks appear to stall.

The remarks by the US President mark a sharp change of tone and come as Washington finds its efforts to reach a truce are hampered by Mr Putin’s apparent intransigence.

According to NBC, Mr Trump called one of their journalists to express his fury after the Russian President questioned Volodymyr Zelensky’s future as a leader – something that Mr Trump himself has done.

“If Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault … I am going to put secondary tariffs on all oil coming out of Russia,” Mr Trump told journalist Kristen Welker.

He said he “was very angry, pissed off” over Mr Putin’s recent comments about Mr Zelensky’s credibility and talking about new leadership in Ukraine.

Over the weekend, Mr Putin called for a “transitional administration” to be put in place in Ukraine and vowed his army would “finish off” Ukrainian troops.

The US president has been pushing for a speedy end to the more than three-year war since taking office, but his administration has failed to reach a breakthrough despite negotiations with both sides.

Mr Putin rejected a joint US-Ukrainian plan for a 30-day ceasefire, and on Friday suggested Mr Zelensky be removed from office as part of the peace process.

Mr Trump told NBC that Mr Putin knows he is angry, but said that he has “a very good relationship with him” and “the anger dissipates quickly … if he does the right thing.”

Warming ties between Washington and Moscow since Mr Trump’s return to office and his threats to stop supporting Kyiv have bolstered Russia on the battlefield as it pursues its floundering invasion.

Ukraine has accused Russia of dragging out talks with no intention of halting its offensive, with fresh attacks on the northeastern border city of Kharkiv.

Six strikes hit overnight Saturday into Sunday, wounding personnel undergoing treatment at a military hospital and killing at least two people in a residential building, according to Ukrainian officials.

Russian forces also captured a village just seven kilometres from the border of Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region in their latest advance, Moscow said Sunday.

The Kremlin’s troops have not crossed the boundary of the region since their offensive began in 2022, but they have been grinding toward it for months in the hope of a breakthrough.

Mr Putin, in power for 25 years and repeatedly elected in votes with no competition, has often questioned Mr Zelensky’s “legitimacy” as president, after the Ukrainian leader’s initial five-year mandate ended in May 2024.

Under Ukrainian law, elections are suspended during times of major military conflict, and Mr Zelensky’s domestic opponents have all said no ballots should be held until after the conflict.

Mr Trump has himself had rocky relations with Mr Zelensky, calling him a “dictator” and clashing with him live on camera at the White House last month.

Mr Zelensky, in his evening address on Saturday, sought to rally his country’s allies against Mr Putin.

“For too long now, America’s proposal for an unconditional ceasefire has been on the table without an adequate response from Russia,” Mr Zelensky said.

“There could already be a ceasefire if there was real pressure on Russia,” he added, thanking those countries “who understand this” and have stepped up sanctions pressure on the Kremlin.

Both Moscow and Kyiv agreed to the concept of a Black Sea truce following talks with US officials earlier this week, but Russia said the deal would not enter into force until Ukraine’s allies lifted certain sanctions.

Explaining the secondary tariffs threat, Mr Trump told NBC it would be that “if you buy oil from Russia, you can’t do business in the United States.”

“There will be a 25 per cent tariff on all oil, a 25 to 50 point tariff on all oil,” he said, without giving further details.

AFP