Putin dismisses Trump ultimatum on Ukraine war
Russian President Vladimir Putin is determined to continue the war in Ukraine, despite a recent ultimatum from President Donald Trump and his threat to impose a 100% tariff on countries that buy Russian oil.
This information comes from the Russian service of The Moscow Times, which cites Reuters and its sources close to the Kremlin.
According to these sources, Putin maintains his goal of completely conquering the four Ukrainian regions—Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson—which were annexed into the Russian Federation following the so-called "referendums" held at the end of 2022.
Reuters' sources indicate that Putin is convinced his army is winning on the battlefield and doesn't believe the new U.S. sanctions will have any more of an effect than the numerous previous packages of restrictive measures.
"It's difficult to imagine that China will stop buying Russian oil just because Trump demands it," said one of the agency's sources, adding that harsh sanctions against Russian energy resources would inevitably lead to a rise in global prices.
Another Reuters contact stated that there's skepticism within the Kremlin about whether Trump will follow through on his threat. "He's made threats before," the source said, "but he later either changed his mind or did nothing."
The sources also say that generals in the General Staff have promised Putin that Ukraine's defenses will collapse within three months, and the Kremlin sees no reason to halt the offensive, which in July led to the largest territorial gains this year—502 km².
The Kremlin values its relationship with Trump, the Reuters sources emphasized, but Putin's priority remains the war. "He simply cannot afford to end it just because Trump wants him to," one source stated.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
