NATO's European countries are to send their own air defense systems to Ukraine – and buy new ones from the USA, according to President Donald Trump.
We want to make sure that Ukraine can do what they want, said Trump after meeting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House on Monday.
If no peace agreement is reached within 50 days, extremely tough tariffs will also be imposed on Russia and its trading partners, according to Trump.
Russia "needs time" to respond to Trump's ultimatum, the Kremlin reports on Tuesday. According to the high-ranking official's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, the country is, however, ready for new talks with Kyiv.
Earlier, Dmitry Medvedev, vice chairman of the Russian Security Council, called Trump's move a "theatrical ultimatum" that Russia does not care about. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov tells the state news agency Tass that Russia does not "accept ultimatums".
Criticizes deadline
Trump's message is indeed an American U-turn – but at the same time far from the best offer he could have come up with, according to several analyses.
In practice, the president has simply allowed other NATO countries to buy American weapons. Above all, it's about the Patriot air defense system, which is the only one that can stop Russia's nightly drone and missile rain over Ukraine. For Kyiv, it means a short-term, vital breathing space.
But it's also about "top-class" other weapons for billions of dollars that will be purchased – which, according to Trump, will quickly reach the battlefields in Ukraine.
If I were Vladimir Putin today, I would consider taking the negotiations on Ukraine more seriously, said Rutte side by side with Trump on Monday.
Believes Kremlin wants peace
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyj says he is grateful. But the tariff deadline of 50 days is being criticized from several quarters.
50 days is a very long time considering they kill innocent civilians every day, says EU Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas.
Many had hoped for immediate "second-hand tariffs" on Russian goods and energy. Such tariffs would mean that American companies that trade with, for example, China and India – which buy oil from Russia – would have to pay a hefty customs fee, which would likely make them look for other alternatives, which in the long run could lead to Russia losing its buyers.
Trump's tone towards Russia has definitely shifted significantly, according to analysts on both sides of the Atlantic. But the deadline shows that Trump has not yet lost faith in the war's most elusive fantasy: that the Kremlin actually wants peace, writes CNN.
Trump is also notorious for setting deadlines that he then does not follow up on, notes The New York Times.
