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Fresh off ordering a U.S. airstrike that targeted Iran’s deepest nuclear facilities, President Donald Trump is now shifting his focus toward Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Indicating that tensions with Russian President Vladimir Putin may be approaching a breaking point, Trump teased a significant development, saying a “major statement” on Russia will be delivered next week. “You’ll be seeing things happen,” Trump said Friday from the White House lawn, according to the New York Post.
In a Thursday interview with NBC’s Kirsten Walker, Trump outlined a heightened U.S. role in arming Ukraine, noting a NATO summit deal from June. According to NBC News, Trump said, “We’re sending weapons to NATO, and NATO is paying for those weapons, 100 percent. So what we’re doing is the weapons that are going out are going to NATO, and then NATO is going to be giving those weapons [to Ukraine], and NATO is paying for those weapons.”
“We send weapons to NATO, and NATO is going to reimburse the full cost of those weapons,” he added. The U.S. has been providing weapons to Ukraine since before Russia’s 2022 invasion.
Trump is also weighing harsher sanctions on Moscow as Putin continues to reject diplomatic efforts. At a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, Trump didn’t hold back, saying the Russian leader talks “bulls***.”
“We get a lot of bulls*** thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump said. “He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
According to the New York Post, Trump is considering sanctions targeting customers of Russian oil, minerals, and other exports. He has also discussed potentially supplying Ukraine with an additional Patriot air-defense system, which could come directly from the U.S. or via an allied transfer from countries like Germany or France.
While Trump has not suggested direct U.S. military involvement similar to the recent airstrike in Iran—where bombers from Missouri struck Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility—his support for expanded sanctions and military aid would mark a more assertive U.S. stance in the Ukraine conflict. Trump has previously criticized both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Meanwhile, the Senate is reviewing a bipartisan bill co-sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Sen. Sidney Blumenthal of Connecticut, which would impose a 500 percent tariff on nations importing oil from Russia. This measure aims to strike at a core element of Russia’s economy.
The legislation would permit Trump to waive the tariffs twice, with the second waiver subject to congressional approval. Trump characterized the proposal as another strategic option, telling NBC News, “It’s at my option if I want to use it.”
“They’re going to pass a very major and very biting sanctions bill, but it’s up to the president as to whether or not he wants to exercise it,” he said.
The bill appears likely to clear the Senate, but must still pass in the House in a form Trump agrees to before it can become law.
