EDINBURGH, Scotland (BN24)— U.S. President Donald Trump has set a sharply reduced timeline for Russia to end its war in Ukraine, giving Moscow a 10-to-12 day deadline or face a new wave of tough U.S. sanctions and trade penalties.
Trump issued the warning during a high-stakes meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland on July 28, where he expressed growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s continued military aggression in Ukraine. Speaking alongside Starmer, Trump stated, “I’m going to make a new deadline of about ten or twelve days from today. There’s no reason in waiting.”
The statement marks a significant escalation in Trump’s pressure campaign, as the president moves to scrap his earlier 50-day deadline, which he announced on July 14. That original timeline, set to expire September 2, was aimed at encouraging de-escalation efforts from both Moscow and Kyiv. The revised deadline is expected to be formally announced by July 29.
Trump said the United States would not hesitate to implement a new round of punitive economic measures if Russia fails to move toward a ceasefire, including sanctions and possibly secondary tariffs targeting nations that continue to trade with Russia.
“I want to be generous, but we just don’t see any progress being made,” Trump said. “It would be sanctions and maybe tariffs – secondary tariffs.”
The warning underscores a shift in Trump’s rhetoric since the beginning of his second term. While initially assigning equal blame to both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for prolonging the war, Trump has recently focused his criticism almost entirely on the Kremlin. He accused Putin of using back-channel diplomacy to stall for time while continuing missile and drone strikes on Ukrainian cities.
“He’s got to make a deal,” Trump said. “Too many people are dying. It’s a really bloody war.”
The conflict, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, has entered its third year with little sign of resolution. Trump’s increasingly hardline stance and the accelerated deadline appear designed to force a breakthrough — or to justify sweeping punitive measures aimed not just at Russia but also its economic partners.
“You would think, based on common sense, that he would want to make a deal,” Trump said. “We’ll find out.”
