"President Donald Trump's statements are very serious. We will certainly need time to study what he said in Washington," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said today, emphasizing that Russia remains open to negotiations and is waiting for Ukraine to propose a time for the third round of direct talks.

"We are still ready," the Kremlin spokesperson said, but stressed that Trump's statement could lead Ukraine to believe that this is "an exhortation for them to continue the war, not a signal for peace."

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov at a meeting in Moscow, 12/2023. Photo: AFP

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov at a meeting in Moscow, 12/2023. Photo: AFP

President Trump warned on 14/7 that he would impose 100% tariffs if Russia does not resolve the conflict in Ukraine within 50 days, and the US would also impose secondary tariffs.

A White House official later explained that Trump was referring to "secondary tariffs" aimed at countries that buy Russian exports. This is seen as a threat to the Russian oil industry, intended to weaken Moscow's ability to respond to strict sanctions from the West.

In an interview published by the BBC today, the White House chief continued to stress his disappointment with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but added that this does not mean the two leaders have ceased communication.

Russia exports very few goods to the US, less than 5 billion USD in 2023, and the figure has decreased in subsequent years. Therefore, tariffs will not significantly affect Russia. Meanwhile, sanctions targeting Moscow's energy sector and customers could cause more damage.

Two previous rounds of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have not yielded any breakthroughs to end the conflict.

Ukraine considers holding further talks "meaningless" as Russian delegation officials have no authority to make any concessions, and criticized Moscow for participating in the first two rounds of negotiations with demands that Kyiv "could not accept."

Vu Hoang (AFP)