U.S. President Donald Trump said he expects Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine, eliminating the need for the United States to impose secondary tariffs on Russian oil. Trump made the comments on March 31 while speaking with reporters; a video of his remarks was published by Bloomberg.
“I want to see him make a deal so that we stop Russian soldiers, and Ukrainian soldiers, and other people from being killed,” Trump said, responding to a question about whether he was serious about introducing tariffs on Russian oil.
“I want to make sure that he follows through, and I think he will. I don’t want to go secondary tariffs on his oil, but I think […] it’s something I would do if I thought he wasn’t doing the job,” Trump added. “I think he’s going to live up to what he told me, and I think he’s going to fulfill his part of the deal.”
In an interview with NBC News the day before, Trump said he was “very angry” and “pissed off” by Putin’s calls for a U.N.-led transitional government in Ukraine and warned that he could impose 25 percent secondary tariffs on Russian oil exports if Moscow prevented a ceasefire agreement from being reached.
In response to NBC’s report about Trump’s frustration, the Kremlin said Russia “continues to work with the American side.”