The contents of this article are written with authoritative materials and personal opinions. The source of the literature has been marked at the end of the article, so please know.
Recently, Trump began to make malicious remarks again, directly turning the international situation upside down, and Putin’s response was extremely calm.
U.S. President Donald Trump has openly spoke to Russia, drawing a red line, and must reach a peace deal with Ukraine by August 8, otherwise it will have to eat “destructive sanctions.”
Trump threatened to impose tariffs of up to 500% on Russian goods, and anyone who dares to do oil business with Russia would wait for "secondary sanctions" by the United States and be directly fined 100%.
However, Trump has sent a special envoy, Steve Witkov, to Russia to see if a diplomatic settlement is possible. Trump has always said before that he and Putin have chatted at least four times, and Putin has promised a ceasefire every time. What happened? The more you fight, the more you get.
Maybe it’s just feeling “deceived” that Trump has changed his strategy against Russia before he wants to come up with the “business man” way. Suspending sanctions, negotiating conditions, and even suggesting that "territory for peace" can be exchanged. Now it has become completely tough.
During a visit to the UK, Trump directly said that he was "very disappointed" with Putin and shortened the ceasefire period from 50 days to 10-12 days. He threatened that if Russia did not give in, it would face severe sanctions.
On August 1, when Putin met with Belarusian President Lukashenko, he also made Russia's position clear.
Putin said particularly firmly that Russia's goal in Ukraine will not change, that is, to ask Ukraine to recognize Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia as Russian, and Crimea must also be Russian.
President Lukashenko warned Ukraine that if negotiations were not urgent, Russia would continue to annex more territory.
Let's talk about the Trump envoy, Steve Witcoff. He was born in New York, with one Russian and the other Belarusian parents, so everyone thought he should be a "pro-Russian".
When he went to Russia this time, everyone thought that Trump was putting pressure on Russia while also trying to find a decent escape. Maybe I just want to touch Russia's bottom line and see if I can find a solution acceptable to both sides, and don't confront it directly.
Trump may just want to save Putin some "face" through Witkov's visit so that Putin can also give the United States a way out, so that Trump can withdraw his ultimatum.
Since the Crimean crisis in 2014, Russia has become accustomed to living under sanctions, and their economy has gradually become closed and self-sufficient.
Important sectors such as food, energy, and military industry have increasing self-sufficiency, so they are more vulnerable to new sanctions threats.
At the same time, Russia is also strengthening energy cooperation with countries such as China and India to find ways to compensate for the losses caused by sanctions.They also want to remain competitive in the international market by developing parallel imports and adjusting financial settlements.
Russian Security Council deputy chairman Medvedev directly ignored Trump’s tactics, saying that “every ultimatum is pushing us to the edge of war.”
Medvedev has also been firing on social media, warning Trump that he plays a dangerous game, with every ultimatum increasing the threat of war and even potentially collapsing U.S.-Russian relations.
India has also been under pressure from the United States for buying Russian oil. The U.S. has charged 25 percent tariffs on Indian goods and has warned that if it continues to import Russian oil, it will initiate harsher economic penalties.
On August 15, Trump and Putin held an important meeting in Anchorage, Alaska.This is the first direct dialogue between the two leaders since the outbreak of the conflict.
It was also Putin’s first time in a decade to enter the United States. This meeting was a "three-on-three" model, mainly discussing more core issues.
After the talks, Trump and Putin held a press conference together, but the journalists had no opportunity to ask questions, which made the meeting even more mysterious. In general, although no specific agreement has been reached, the two sides have shown some preliminary consensus on several important issues.
During a meeting with nuclear physicists and nuclear industry experts in Sarov on August 22, Putin said that after Trump took office, Russian-American relations saw the light at the end of the tunnel.
Putin said that his meeting with Trump in Alaska was very frank, "it is only the beginning of a comprehensive restoration of Russian-U.S. relations," he said, adding that the future of Russian-U.S. relations, mainly looking at Washington's leadership, Moscow hopes to fully restore relations with Washington.
However, a few days before the "Trump-P Conference", Trump suddenly changed tactics and issued Putin a threatening "ultimatum" demanding that Russia agree to a ceasefire before the talks.
Now, Trump’s “Ultimate Communiqué” has long expired, but the Russian-Ukrainian conflict is still unresolved.
Russia insists that Ukraine recognizes its control of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporozhye, Helsinki and Crimea, while the United States, as if privately, implicitly acknowledges Russia’s control of Crimea, but demands the return of critical areas, such as the Zaporozhye thermal power plant.
This game is not only a conflict between Russia and Ukraine, but also related to the global energy, financial and security landscape.
References:
1. "The United States requires Russia and Ukraine to reach an agreement before August 8" 2025-08-02 09:53 | Source: Global Times
2. "Putin restates his willingness to hold peace talks Trump says he will deploy two nuclear submarines" 2025-08-02 09:42:06| Source: Xinhuanet
3. "Putin: Russia looks forward to continuing dialogue with Ukraine" 2025-08-01 23:41:32| Source: Xinhuanet
4. "Putin: Russia-US relations have dawned and look forward to full restoration of relations with Washington" 2025-08-23 10:30:36| Source: CCTV News