Russia has criticized US President Donald Trump’s decision to ramp up arms shipments to Ukraine, calling it a “signal” for Kyiv to abandon peace efforts. Moscow says it will not accept the “blackmail” of Washington’s new sanctions ultimatum.
Trump announced a toughened stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine on Monday, setting a 50-day deadline for Moscow to reach a ceasefire or face sanctions. The US also promised more missiles and other weaponry for Kyiv.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned the move, saying it was a “signal to continue the slaughter and abandon the peace process.”
The conflict in Ukraine has led to Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War Two, with over 1.2 million people injured or killed. Russia claims it was forced to launch the war to protect itself from an expanding NATO.
Trump is threatening “100% tariffs on Russia” and secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil if Moscow does not agree to a ceasefire deal by his 50-day deadline.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly cautioned over the escalatory risks of the conflict, which he casts as a proxy war between the world’s two biggest nuclear powers.
US efforts to broker peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow have faced repeated setbacks. Russia says it is ready to hold further talks, but wants all of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed as its own.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned that Moscow would respond if it believed the West was escalating what he cast as its full-scale war against Russia.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-says-trumps-new-weapons-pledge-signal-ukraine-abandon-peace-efforts-2025-07-17