US President Donald Trump again criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin during statements to reporters at the White House on Tuesday (14), saying that the Russian leader is simply not willing to end his war in Ukraine.
“Look, I’m very disappointed because Vladimir [Putin] and I had a very good relationship, probably still do,” Trump said.
“He really needs to resolve this war. And you know they have long lines waiting for gas in Russia now… And suddenly his economy is going to collapse.”
Trump has been pressing Putin for months for a ceasefire in the Ukraine war. So far, without success.
Understand the war in Ukraine
Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently holds about a fifth of the neighboring country’s territory.
Still in 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin decreed the annexation of four Ukrainian regions: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
The Russians are slowly advancing in the east and Moscow shows no signs of abandoning its main war objectives. Meanwhile, Donald Trump, President of the United States, is pushing for a peace agreement.
Ukraine has carried out increasingly bold attacks inside Russia and says the operations are aimed at destroying essential Russian army infrastructure. Putin’s government, in turn, has intensified air strikes, including drone offensives.
Both sides deny targeting civilians, but thousands have died in the conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainians. Thousands of soldiers are also believed to have died on the front line, but neither side releases military casualty figures.
The United States says 1.2 million people were injured or killed in the war.
