President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he had approved sending US defensive weapons to Ukraine and was considering additional sanctions on Moscow, underscoring his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the growing death toll in Russia's war with Ukraine.
Trump, who pledged as a presidential candidate to end the war within a day, has not been able to follow through on that promise and efforts by his administration to broker peace have come up short.
Trump directed his ire at Putin on Tuesday during a meeting with cabinet officials at the White House.
"I'm not happy with Putin. I can tell you that much right now," Trump said, noting that Russian and Ukrainian soldiers were dying in the thousands.
"We get a lot of [expletive] thrown at us by Putin ... He's very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless," Trump said.
Trump said he was considering whether to support a bill in the Senate that would impose steep sanctions on Russia over the war. "I'm looking at it very strongly," he said.
The bill, whose lead sponsors are Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, would also punish other countries that trade with Moscow, imposing 500% tariffs on nations that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports.
DEFENSIVE WEAPONS AGAINST RUSSIAN ADVANCES
Trump said on Monday that the United States would send more weapons to Ukraine, primarily defensive ones, to help it defend itself against Russian advances.
On Tuesday he said he had approved such a move. "We're sending some defensive weapons to Ukraine, and I've approved that," he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he had ordered an expansion of contacts with the United States to ensure critical deliveries of military supplies, primarily air defense.
"We currently have all the necessary political statements and decisions and we must implement them as quickly as possible to protect our people and positions," he said. "These are critical deliveries that mean saving lives and protecting Ukrainian cities and villages. I expect results from these contacts very soon. And this week, we are preparing formats for meetings of our military and political teams."
Zelenskiy has repeatedly urged Ukraine's Western allies to impose tougher sanctions on Moscow to force the Kremlin to agree to a ceasefire as a step towards reaching an end to the war, now 40 months old.
A decision by the Pentagon to halt some shipments of critical weapons to Ukraine prompted warnings by Kyiv last week that the move would weaken its ability to defend against Russia's intensifying airstrikes and battlefield advances.
Trump, who was seated next to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, was asked on Tuesday who had ordered that pause. "I don't know. Why don't you tell me?" Trump responded.
