US envoy in Russia: Putin meets Trump envoy but rejects US pressure; 'President unmoved by Trump's war ultimatum, doubts its potency,' says Kremlin insiders

Time of India

6 days ago

Trump envoy Witkoff meets Putin ahead of Russia-Ukraine peace deadline (AP Photo)
NEW DELHI: Russian President Vladimir
Putin
signalled deep scepticism over US President Donald Trump's looming ultimatum to halt the war in Ukraine, even as the Kremlin hosted Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff in a high-stakes diplomatic meeting on Wednesday, just two days before a Friday deadline for fresh US sanctions to take effect.
According to an exclusive Reuters report citing multiple sources close to the Kremlin, Putin remains steadfast in his military objectives — chiefly the complete capture of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — and believes Russia is gaining ground. Despite Trump's threats to hit Moscow with punitive sanctions and extend 100 percent tariffs on countries importing Russian oil, including China and India, the Russian leader is unlikely to change course.
'If Putin were able to fully occupy those four regions which he has claimed for Russia, he could claim that his war in Ukraine had reached his objectives,' said James Rodgers, author of the forthcoming book The Return of Russia.
Putin holds firm as envoy visits Moscow
Video footage released by the Kremlin on Wednesday showed Putin shaking hands with Witkoff in the Kremlin. However, no additional details were disclosed, and Russian officials have declined to comment on the substance of the meeting.
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Trump, who has repeatedly declared he could end the war within 24 hours of assuming office, said earlier this week that he would await the outcome of the Witkoff meeting before deciding whether to implement new economic measures.
"We're going to see what happens," Trump told reporters Tuesday. "We'll make that determination at that time."
Despite this cautious language, US and allied officials expect an escalation unless a ceasefire or demonstrable progress is achieved before the Friday deadline.
Moscow's continued drone and missile attacks — which recently reached a record high — and the sluggish pace of peace talks have complicated prospects.
The three rounds of Russia-Ukraine talks held in Istanbul since May have yielded no breakthrough. According to Reuters sources, Moscow's participation in these talks is more about optics than substance, intended to show Washington that Putin is not entirely rejecting peace — even as his military continues advancing.
'The talks are devoid of real substance apart from discussions on humanitarian exchanges,' one Kremlin source told Reuters.
Kremlin doubts impact of US sanctions
Sources told Reuters that Putin remains largely unimpressed by Trump's threats. Having withstood multiple waves of sanctions since the war began more than three years ago, the Russian president reportedly views new penalties as unlikely to inflict decisive damage.
'He is worried about Trump's irritation,' one insider said.
'But with the Russian army advancing and the public still largely supportive, he cannot afford to end the war just because Trump wants it.'
Another Kremlin adviser said that while the threat of new sanctions is 'painful and unpleasant,' it is 'not a catastrophe.' The broader mood in Moscow, according to sources, is one of scepticism toward Washington's leverage.
'He's made threats before,' said one source. 'Sometimes he doesn't follow through.
Sometimes he changes his mind.'
Russia brushes off 'illegitimate' tariff threats
On Tuesday, the Kremlin publicly dismissed US threats to raise tariffs on countries trading with Russia as 'illegitimate.' Trump has previously warned of secondary sanctions and tariffs targeting nations like India and China, which continue to import Russian oil.
However, it remains unclear whether these countries would comply with such measures. One Reuters source close to the Kremlin questioned whether China would halt oil purchases simply 'on instructions from Trump,' warning that such actions could backfire by pushing oil prices higher globally.
Despite sanctions, Russia's war economy has shown resilience. Imports from China, including dual-use goods, and munitions from North Korea have allowed Moscow to sustain a high rate of weapons production. Russia's central bank reserves remain partially frozen, with $300 billion stuck in foreign jurisdictions, and foreign direct investment has collapsed. But Putin's war machine continues to operate largely unimpeded.
Trump himself acknowledged this reality over the weekend. 'They're wily characters and they're pretty good at avoiding sanctions, so we'll see what happens,' he said when asked about Moscow's evasive tactics.
Kyiv urges more pressure as battlefield escalates
Ukraine, meanwhile, has urged the US and its allies to maximise pressure on Russia ahead of Friday's deadline.
'It is very important to strengthen all the levers in the arsenal of the United States, Europe, and the G7 so that a ceasefire truly comes into effect immediately,' Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelensky
posted on social media Wednesday, shortly after Witkoff arrived in Moscow.
Zelensky
has also appealed to Washington for more robust military aid and even floated the idea of 'regime change' in Moscow as a long-term solution to ending the war.
Recent data underscores Ukraine's worsening position. According to Black Bird Group, a Finland-based military analysis centre, Kyiv has lost 502 square kilometres of territory in July alone — the largest monthly loss in 2025 so far. Russia now occupies roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
The Russian General Staff reportedly told Putin that the Ukrainian front could collapse within two to three months if current momentum continues.
Still, a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in June noted that Russia's overall territorial gains in the past 18 months amount to less than 1 percent of Ukraine's territory — suggesting that battlefield advances remain slow and costly.
Nuclear rhetoric heightens tensions
Amid the rising pressure, nuclear posturing has returned to the forefront of US-Russia tensions.
On Monday, Trump revealed that two US nuclear submarines had been deployed 'in the region,' following a heated online exchange with former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Trump did not clarify whether the submarines were nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed, or where exactly they were sent.
In response, Russia announced that it was abandoning its self-imposed moratorium on deploying nuclear-capable intermediate-range missiles, citing alleged US deployments near its borders.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that the meeting with Witkoff was 'important, substantial and helpful' and welcomed continued American engagement to end the conflict. However, Russian officials remain deeply wary of what they see as US interference aimed at bolstering Ukraine.
Missed opportunities and a war with no end in sight
One Reuters source revealed that Washington had made a peace offer to Moscow in March: a full lifting of sanctions, recognition of Russian control over Crimea, and tacit acceptance of territories gained since 2022 — if Putin agreed to a full ceasefire.
The source described the offer as a 'fantastic chance,' but said Putin felt constrained by military and political calculations.
'Stopping a war is much more difficult than starting it,' the source noted.
Trump's frustration has become increasingly apparent. Once a vocal admirer of Putin, the President has now described Russia's bombings of Ukrainian cities as 'disgusting' and dismissed Putin's conduct as 'bullshit.'
The White House confirmed Trump's shift in tone. 'President Trump wants to stop the killing, which is why he is selling American-made weapons to NATO members and threatening Putin with biting tariffs and sanctions if he does not agree to a ceasefire,' said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials reported more bloodshed on Wednesday, with two civilians killed and 10 injured in a Russian missile strike on a holiday camp in the southern Zaporizhzhia region — an area Putin has vowed to seize fully.
No end in sight, just shifting red lines
For now, the Kremlin's message is clear: Putin does not intend to back down before Friday's deadline. With battlefield dynamics still in his favour and his territorial goals far from complete, the Russian leader sees Trump's pressure as another geopolitical hurdle, not a game-changer.
The meeting with Witkoff may buy time, but it has not changed the core calculus in Moscow. If anything, Putin's war objectives — full control over the four eastern and southern regions of Ukraine — have only become more entrenched.
'He simply has a top priority — Putin cannot afford to end the war just because Trump wants it,' said one Russian source quoted by Reuters.
As the world watches, Friday's deadline could either become a pivotal diplomatic milestone or just another moment in a long and bloody war with no clear end.