President Donald Trump has indicated his readiness to implement a second phase of sanctions against Russia, as he headed to the U.S. Open in New York City on Sunday.
The Republican leader engaged with reporters as he departed the White House for the sporting event, where he was questioned about his plans regarding Russia, following their recent large-scale aerial assault on Ukraine since the war began.
When asked by a reporter, “Are you ready to move into the second phase of sanctions against Russia?” Trump responded affirmatively, stating, “Yeah, I am.” The statement comes as Trump issues ‘final warning’ as he gives major update over war in Gaza.
The war between Russia and Ukraine reached devastating new heights this weekend in a brutal overnight blitz. President Vladimir Putin launched a savage attack on Ukraine involving a staggering 805 drones and decoys.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to X to announce that four people were killed across his country due to Russian strikes and 44 others were injured. Emergency services are still responding to the aftermath of Russia’s “ruthless” air attack last night, Zelensky added.
Zelensky also called for help to “force the Kremlin criminals to stop the killings.”
Peace talks prove ‘difficult’
Earlier this week, Zelensky thanked Trump for having a “long and detailed” conversation with him and other European leaders about how to possibly end the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Trump tweeted last week he’s been working on securing a peace deal, admitting that perhaps the conflict was “a little more difficult” to end than he thought.
The AP reported Friday a team of European officials, led by EU sanctions envoy David O’Sullivan, will visit the U.S. Treasury on Monday to discuss various forms of economic pressure to exert on Russia. The source said Secretary Scott Bessent spoke with the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, last week ahead of the meeting.
The focus of the meeting is expected to be on energy, sanctions, financial services and trade.
Putin strikes American plant
Since Putin’s summit with Trump, Russia launched a rare drone and missile attack on western Ukraine last month, striking an American-owned electronics plant. Trump has expressed increasing anger towards Putin but has stopped short of imposing new sanctions.