Stop war or face tariffs, Trump tells Putin

Donald Trump has threatened Russia with taxes, tariffs and sanctions if a deal to end the war in Ukraine is not struck soon, as the new US president tries to increase pressure on Moscow to start negotiations with Kyiv.

- Pjotr Sauer

Writing in a post on Truth Social yesterday, Trump said Russia's economy was failing and urged Vladimir Putin to "settle now and stop this ridiculous war".

Without a deal, Trump said: "I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries." The statement marks Trump's most detailed effort yet to end the war in Ukraine.

"Let's get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way - and the easy way is always better," he said.

During the election campaign, Trump said he would end the war "in 24 hours" if elected.

Asked on Monday how long it would take to do so, he said: "I have to speak to President Putin. We're going to have to find out." US media reported this week that Trump had instructed his special envoy, Keith Kellogg, to end the war in 100 days. Top Russian officials have expressed willingness to engage with Trump in recent statements. Putin praised his readiness to "restore direct contacts with Russia" on Monday.

In what appeared to be an appeal to Trump's well-documented fondness for flattery, Putin has described him as courageous on two occasions, referring to the assassination attempt against him at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on 13 July.