Despite claiming he would end the war within days of his second term, Trump said he now believes that a US-brokered permanent cease-fire after the three years of fighting between Ukraine and invader Russia may be out of reach.
“Maybe it’s not possible to do,” Trump told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.”
“There’s tremendous hatred, just so you understand, Kristen,” he stated, adding, “We’re talking tremendous hatred between these two men [Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky] and between, you know, some of the soldiers, frankly. Between the generals.
“They’ve been fighting hard for three years.”
Trump’s comments came as Putin on Sunday tried to quell fears that the costs of the war might eventually push Moscow into using nuclear weapons to defeat Ukraine — although he did not reject the idea outright.
“They wanted to provoke us so that we made mistakes,” Putin said of the nuclear option.
“There has been no need to use those weapons … and I hope they will not be required,” he added.
Russia opened the door to the potential use of its nuclear arsenal, the world’s largest, in November, when Putin signed a revamped version of the nation’s doctrine allowing Moscow to launch a nuke in response to a broader range of attacks — as well as labeling nations that arm the Kremlin’s enemy as possible targets.
Trump’s pessimism over the peace talks echoes the State Department’s announcement Friday that the US will end its efforts to broker peace if progress isn’t made soon.
Still, while he acknowledged setbacks to the powwows, the president Sunday said he thinks his administration could have “a very good chance of doing it,” or helping to reach an agreement.
Putin has repeatedly rejected America’s proposals for a cease-fire, claiming no deal addresses Russia’s concerns and that the Kremlin will carry on until all its goals are reached.
The Russian president assured his supporters Sunday that Moscow has the necessary strengths and resources to accomplish the territorial expansion despite reports of hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides killed or injured in the past three years.
“We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires,” Putin boasted.
Putin’s commitment to the Ukraine war and rejection to making any kind of concessions has kept the American-led peace talks frozen in place, much to the frustration of Kyiv and Washington.
Trump also said in the interview with NBC News that the US may consider implementing additional sanctions against Russia if it does not reach a peace deal with Ukraine to end the war.
When asked if Trump would sign a sanctions bill touted by close Republican ally Senator Lindsey Graham, Trump stated that “it depends on whether or not Russia is behaving toward coming to a peace.”
“We want a peace deal. We want Russia and Ukraine to agree to a deal. We think we’re fairly close, and we’re going to save a lot of people from being killed,” Trump continued.
At least 72 US senators are prepared to vote for “bone-crushing” sanctions against Russia and massive tariffs on countries supporting Moscow, Graham has recently told reporters.
When asked if Trump believes the parties are close to establishing a peace deal, Trump was not definitive in his response.
“I do believe we’re closer with one party, and maybe not as close with the other. But we’ll have to see. I’d like to not say which one we’re closer to,” Trump noted, adding that he was pleased with the outcome of the minerals deal signed with Ukraine on May 1.
Trump has reportedly grown frustrated with the slow progression of peace negotiations, claiming on April 26 that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be “tapping me along,” and that Putin may not be interested in ending the war.
When asked by NBC News whether Trump “misread” Putin’s intentions to settle the war, Trump responded: “I have no idea.”
“No, I’ll tell you about in a month from now, or two weeks from now,” Trump continued, adding, “I can tell you this, he’s — his ambition was stopped to a large extent when he saw that it was me that was now leading the charge.”
Frustrated by the lack of progress, Trump has reportedly been wavering over his commitment to continue to serve as a mediator between Ukraine and Russia. When asked about his commitment to see a peace deal being achieved, Trump said he ” hope(s) it gets done.”
“Well, there will be a time when I will say, ‘Okay, keep going. Keep being stupid and keep fighting,'” Trump told NBC News.
“Sometimes I get close to it, and then positive things happen.”
