Trump Says Suspending Russia Sanctions Keeps Peace Talks Alive, as Row with Zelensky Deepens

US President Donald Trump has explained his decision to suspend a set of sanctions on Russia, saying the move is intended to keep Moscow at the negotiating table.

Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he is in the process of negotiating peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, adding that he did not want to do anything that would foolishly drive Russia away from the bargaining table.

Trump blocked the numerous sanctions just two days before they were due to take effect. The decision has deepened the row between Washington and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zelensky told NBC News on Sunday that siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin would be a historic mistake. Zelensky, who has pushed for an end to the fighting, has repeatedly said that Putin does not want peace, ever since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia's envoy Kirill Dmitriev, by contrast, welcomed Trump's order, calling it an important and truly historic moment and saying the sanctions would have inflicted serious damage on the US and the global market.

In the same Truth Social post, Trump also aimed sharp remarks at Zelensky, claiming the Ukrainian leader does not want to end the war and probably never did, and that he could have made a better deal two years ago than he can now.

The strained relations have another backdrop: last week the US struck a controversial deal to import Russian diesel. Ukraine has accused the Trump administration of withdrawing key military support.

Zelensky has since declared it was nice to be among real leaders while addressing a European Union summit, after Trump said Zelensky was more difficult to deal with than Putin. The Ukrainian president attended the EU leaders' summit in Brussels on Friday.

Between the sanctions decision and the exchange of remarks, the tension between the United States and Ukraine is now out in the open. Trump argues the pause protects the negotiations; Kyiv fears concessions will hand Moscow further advantage.

Attention now turns to the next stage of the peace negotiations: whether holding back the sanctions produces real progress at the table, and how the distance between Washington and Kyiv is managed, will shape the course of this diplomatic standoff in the days ahead.