President Donald Trump has declared he is ready to move ahead with a new round of sanctions against Russia, following its largest aerial assault on Ukraine since the war began.
Asked by reporters whether he would move to a “second stage” of sanctions, Trump replied in the affirmative. Speaking from the White House lawn before his departure to the US Open in New York City, the President did not specify what the new sanctions would entail. However, he had previously threatened to impose fresh tariffs and sanctions targeting countries that import Russian oil—a critical revenue source for the Kremlin’s war efforts.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko praised the decision, telling The Post, “We appreciate President Trump’s prompt reaction and a strong signal of readiness to impose secondary sanctions on Russia. This step is very important for Ukraine as our people continue to suffer every day from Russian strikes of increasing scale.”
The announcement follows a meeting between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska last month, where Trump had sounded optimistic about a path toward peace. Despite this, Russia has continued to escalate its attacks, with a massive overnight assault on Ukraine unleashing at least 810 drones and decoys. The attack killed at least four people and injured 44, and for the first time, it targeted Ukraine’s central government building in Kyiv. Ukraine claims to have intercepted more than 745 of the drones and four missiles.
The new sanctions would be a significant development, as Russia’s previous record for an aerial bombardment occurred in July when it fired 728 drones into Ukraine.
Source: Time Magazine
