President Donald Trump is calling on Russian President Vladimir Putin to “make a deal” to end the “ridiculous” war with Ukraine, which started nearly three years ago. During his 2024 campaign, Trump often spoke about ending major world conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war, invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s “peace through strength” doctrine. Now that he’s in office, Trump is making it clear that it’s time for Putin to come to the table.

“I’m not looking to hurt Russia,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. In the post, Trump threatens “high levels of taxes, tariffs and sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States.” This threat comes days after reports that Putin was starting to get concerned about his country’s economy as the war with Ukraine continues.

In his first sit-down interview since returning to the White House, Trump told “Hannity” that Zelenskyy has “had enough.” However, while Trump condemned Putin, he said that Zelenskyy is “no angel,” chastising the Ukrainian leader for fighting instead of making a deal.

Reuters reported in November that Putin is open to discussing a peace plan. He reportedly could agree to freeze the conflict along the current lines.

Russian President Vladimir Putin use state-run media to spread the Kremlin’s message.  (ALEXEI NIKOLSKY/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images)

Since Putin’s 2022 invasion, civilians in Ukraine have had to adjust to life during war. Matviichuk, who is based out of Kyiv, describes it as living in “total uncertainty.” However, her focus has been on exposing Russia’s atrocities. Nearly three years into the war, she has cataloged approximately 80,000 Russian crimes. 

“We don’t want to live in Putin’s world,” Matviichuk said. “We want to live in a world where democracy and rule of law and freedom are respected.”

Ashley Carnahan and Caitlin McFall contributed to this report.