U.S. President Donald Trump has said that Vladimir Putin’s refusal to participate in ceasefire talks with Kyiv amounts to “playing with fire.”
Trump made these remarks as Russian forces continue to advance in northeastern Ukraine.
Although Russia has launched some of the heaviest and most extensive attacks in the past few weeks compared to the previous three years of war against Ukraine, the U.S. President expressed disappointment with Putin.
On Tuesday, Trump wrote on his platform, Truth Social:
“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t understand is that if it weren’t for me, Russia would be in a very bad situation — I mean, very bad things would have happened. Putin is playing with fire.”
Just a few days earlier, Trump had also criticized the Russian President in response to ongoing Russian attacks on Ukraine, calling him “crazy.”