US President Donald Trump has issued a stark warning, indicating that Washington may abandon its efforts to mediate an end to the Ukraine war within days if rapid progress is not seen from both Moscow and Kyiv.
This warning confirms a sudden shift in US messaging, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier stating in Paris that the United States would “move on” if peace was not “doable.”
Trump has been applying pressure on both sides to reach a truce but has so far failed to extract any significant concessions from the Kremlin, despite an ice-breaking call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and repeated negotiations with Moscow.
“Yeah very shortly,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked to confirm Rubio’s remarks about abandoning talks. “No specific number of days, but quickly. We want to get it done.”
Trump refrained from directly blaming either Putin, who ordered the full-scale invasion of pro-Western Ukraine in February 2022, or Kyiv’s President Volodymyr Zelensky. However, he insisted that both sides must demonstrate progress.
“Now if for some reason one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we’re just going to say: ‘You’re foolish. You’re fools. You’re horrible people’ — and we’re going to just take a pass,” Trump said.
He added, “But hopefully we won’t have to do that.”
‘Move on’
Moscow has continued its strikes on Ukraine, resulting in at least two deaths and dozens of injuries in attacks on the northeastern regions of Kharkiv and Sumy, according to Ukrainian officials.
One of the few commitments that Trump had secured from Russia—a temporary moratorium on strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure—”expired” on Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in response to an AFP question.
After meeting with European officials in Paris to discuss a ceasefire, Rubio said that Washington needed to determine soon whether a ceasefire was “doable in the short term.”
“Because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on,” he told reporters.
However, during a trip to Italy, US Vice President JD Vance still insisted that he was “optimistic” about ending the three-year war.
Trump had promised to end the war within 24 hours of taking office but has little to show for his efforts thus far.
He has embarked on a rapprochement quest with the Kremlin that has alarmed Kyiv and created a rift between the United States and its European allies.
He and Vance also had a heated argument with Zelensky in the Oval Office in February, whom he still accuses of bearing responsibility for Moscow’s invasion.
Trump insisted that he was not being “played” by Moscow, which Ukraine accuses of stalling.
“My whole life has been one big negotiation and I know when people are playing us and I know when they’re not,” the billionaire property tycoon added.
‘Mockery’
Meanwhile, Zelensky condemned the latest attacks on his country, which occurred just days before Easter.
Kyiv had earlier announced that it had received the bodies of 909 soldiers from Russia.
“This is how Russia started Good Friday — with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, Shahed drones. A mockery of our people and cities,” Zelensky said on Telegram.
Russia claimed that it had targeted “key drone production sites” and Ukrainian military airfields.
Putin had rejected a joint US-Ukrainian proposal for a full and unconditional pause in the conflict last month, while the Kremlin has conditioned a truce in the Black Sea on the West lifting certain sanctions.
Trump has also repeatedly expressed anger and frustration with Zelensky, marking a significant departure from his predecessor, Joe Biden.
Ukraine is set to sign a deal next week in Washington that would grant the United States sweeping access to its mineral resources.
European powers have been seeking to participate in the negotiations, particularly as Trump’s administration insists that the continent should share the burden of Ukraine’s security.
France hosted meetings between US and European officials in Paris on Thursday, describing the talks as having initiated a “positive process.”
The meetings included French President Emmanuel Macron, Rubio, and US envoy Steve Witkoff.
However, many allies have been alarmed by Witkoff—who recently met with Putin in Russia—repeating Moscow’s talking points about the war.
