US President Donald Trump has threatened Russian leader Vladimir Putin with “very bad things” after the latter launched major attacks across Ukraine over the weekend despite the West’s ceasefire calls. 

Trump earlier said Putin “has gone absolutely CRAZY!” after the weekend strikes, which led to market fluctuations in Russia. 

In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump issued a rare warning to Putin, suggesting that if not for him, “lots of really bad things” would have happened to Russia.

“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire!” Trump said, without referring to what those “really bad things” entail. 

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The Wall Street Journal, citing “people familiar with Trump’s thinking,” said Trump might impose more sanctions on Moscow this week without targeting the banking sector following the weekend strikes. 

On Monday, two senior Western officials also told Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent that Trump is “seriously considering” lifting all Joe Biden-era restrictions on Ukraine’s warfighting because of the weekend attacks

Trump has previously hailed close personal ties with Putin and has thus far refused to intensify sanctions on Moscow after the latter continuously brushed off his 30-day unconditional ceasefire proposal, saying he will “see how Russia behaves” after his last phone call with Putin.  

G7 Summit to Address ‘Five-Point’ Peace Plan as Trump and Zelensky Join European Leaders
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G7 Summit to Address ‘Five-Point’ Peace Plan as Trump and Zelensky Join European Leaders

As the G7 summit convenes in Evian-les-Bains, France, a potential diplomatic resolution to the Russia-Ukraine war will take center stage. According to German government sources, US President Donald Trump will review a “five-point” peace framework formulated by the E3 (Britain, France, Germany) and Ukraine during recent talks in London. With Ukraine reportedly operating from a position of strength, European leaders are advocating for a quadripartite negotiation format: Ukraine, Russia, the US, and Europe.

At the phone call, Putin proposed a memorandum towards a ceasefire to be negotiated directly with Kyiv without actually accepting a ceasefire ultimatum issued by the West in early May. 

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