Trump prefers talks over new Russia sanctions but has 'many measures' ready, White House says
U.S. President Donald Trump prefers diplomacy over imposing new sanctions on Russia in his effort to end the war in Ukraine but is prepared to increase economic pressure on Moscow if necessary, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Aug. 14.
The statement comes a day before Trump's scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, where the two are expected to discuss a path forward to end Moscow's war. The summit will mark Putin's first visit to the U.S. in a decade.
"What comes after that meeting is up to President Trump," Leavitt told Fox News. "He wants to sit down and look the Russian president in the eyes and see what progress can be made."
"Certainly, there are sanctions and many other measures that the president could utilize if he has to. Not that he wants to… diplomacy and negotiation have always been the way for this president."
Trump has previously described the Alaska talks as a "feel-out" meeting.
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Aug. 13 joined Trump and European leaders in a video call, during which Trump pledged to make a ceasefire one of his priorities in talks with Putin.
The U.S. president has signaled that any peace deal would require both Kyiv and Moscow to "swap" land, a position that has drawn concern from Kyiv and European capitals.
A Ukrainian Presidential Office source earlier told the Kyiv Independent that Moscow's proposal would require Kyiv to withdraw from the Ukrainian-controlled parts of the partially occupied Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in exchange for a Russian pullback from parts of Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts.
Putin has also demanded that Ukraine withdraw from the Ukrainian-controlled parts of the partially occupied Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts and accept a ban on NATO membership as preconditions for peace. These demands were voiced during peace talks in Istanbul in May and again on July 23.
Zelensky has rejected handing any new territory into Russian occupation, urging a ceasefire as the first step toward negotiations, a stance supported by Kyiv's European partners.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who joined the Aug. 13 call alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, said the U.S. is prepared to offer Ukraine security guarantees once peace is established.
The European leaders have also reaffirmed their readiness to provide such guarantees, including plans to deploy a reassurance force after hostilities cease.
