Moscow Could Agree to Air Truce with Ukraine to Deter Further US sanctions, Bloomberg Reports

The Kremlin could agree to an air truce in its war against Ukraine to deter U.S. President Donald Trump from imposing further sanctions on Russia, sources close to the matter told Bloomberg on Tuesday.

While a pause in drone and missile airstrikes could be on the table, Russia remains determined to pursue its war, sources told the news agency, as Russian forces continue to make advances on the battlefield.In turn, three sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters – also on Tuesday – that Putin is unlikely to bow to Trump’s sanctions ultimatum, citing Putin’s scepticism that yet more U.S. sanctions will not have much of an impact after successive waves of economic penalties during 3-1/2 years of war.Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had a “productive conversation” with his American counterpart covering sanctions on Russia and the finalization of a U.S.-Ukraine drone deal.

Deadline

The talks between the presidents came as a deadline set by Trump for Moscow to make progress toward ending the war in Ukraine is set to expire on Friday.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to visit Moscow on Wednesday to repeat Trump’s ultimatum to Putin, which threatens sanctions on both Russia and buyers of its oil and gas exports unless progress is made.

The Financial Times further revealed on Tuesday that the U.S. administration is also considering additional sanctions on Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil tankers.

Other Topics of Interest

Sweden Leads EU Push to Curb Tourist Visas for Russians

Ahead of a meeting of EU interior and justice ministers, the EU bloc is seeking ways to restrict tourist visas for Russian citizens after nearly 500,000 Russians entered Europe last year, declaring there should be “no more shopping weekends” and “luxurious trips to Europe” while Ukrainians are killed at the front and in their homes.

In recent weeks, Russia has ramped up its air attacks on Ukraine, firing thousands of drones and missiles at civilian targets.

Dozens lost their lives and around 159 were injured when Russian munitions rained down on the Ukrainian capital last week, in one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

So far, Putin’s stated demands include the complete withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from areas of Ukraine claimed by Moscow, as well as limits on the size of Ukraine’s military – demands rejected by Ukraine.

Preliminary negotiations, held in Istanbul, have so far proved fruitless, with the two parties agreeing only to swap prisoners while making no progress on ending the fighting.