September 8, 2025 | 07:00 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - United States President Donald Trump, on Sunday, stated that the White House is prepared to move forward with the second stage of sanctions against Russia after the recent attack by Moscow, which resulted in the deaths of at least 4 people and the injury of dozens in Ukraine.
"It’s such a horrible waste of humanity. I am not thrilled with what’s happening there, I will tell you," said Trump to reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland as reported by Al Jazeera.
"I think it’s going to get settled."
When asked by a reporter if he is ready to proceed to the "second stage of sanctions against Russia" as he departed from the White House to New York, Trump replied, "Yeah, I am," as quoted by Anadolu.
However, Trump did not further elaborate on his response.
The confirmation came after Russia launched a record 818 drones and missiles overnight, according to the Ukrainian Air Force Command, surpassing the previous record of 728 in July.
A main building in the government district in Kyiv, Ukraine, became a target of the Russian drone and missile attack in the assault launched from Saturday night to Sunday morning, several U.S. media outlets reported.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko stated that since the conflict began, this was the first time the main government building in Kyiv was damaged in an attack.
Trump has shown a more pessimistic attitude regarding the chances of mediating an end to the conflict in the near future or bringing together the presidents of Russia and Ukraine directly, as reported by NBC News last week, citing statements from two senior U.S. government officials.
Speaking to NBC News earlier, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tougher sanctions, including secondary measures targeting Russian oil buyers, could cripple the Russian economy and bring Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
"We are prepared to increase pressure on Russia, but we need our European partners to follow us," Bessent said.
"We are in a race now between how long can the Ukrainian military hold up versus how long can the Russian economy hold up."
"And if the U.S. and the EU can come in, do more sanctions, secondary tariffs on the countries that buy Russian oil, the Russian economy will be in full collapse," added Bessent.
U.S. envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, condemned the attacks over the weekend, stating that it "was not a signal that Russia wants to diplomatically end this war."
Trump, who last month imposed a 50 percent tariff on India for continuing to buy Russian oil, has repeatedly threatened to increase pressure on Russia as it struggles to deliver on promises to end the war quickly.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the prospect of sanctions for countries still doing business with Moscow.
In an interview with ABC News on Sunday, Zelensky said, "I’m very thankful to all the partners, but some of them, I mean, they continue [to] buy oil and Russian gas, and this is not fair… I think the idea to put tariffs on the countries that continue to make deals with Russia, I think this is the right idea."
Trump has been pushing for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict for months.
Last month, the U.S. President hosted Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, to discuss the end of the war, in their first face-to-face meeting since Trump returned to the White House.
Shortly after, he hosted Zelensky and European leaders in Washington, DC, to discuss a resolution.
Despite diplomatic efforts, there has been little progress towards a peace deal, with Moscow and Kyiv still far apart on key issues and Russia continuing to bombard Ukrainian cities.
Editor's Choice: Russia Rejects Trump's Claim of Three Nations "Conspiring" Against the U.S.
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