As Russia intensifies attacks, Ukraine questions Trump’s China-linked sanctions strategy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that US hesitation on new sanctions against Moscow risks undermining efforts to end the war, voicing particular concern over President Donald Trump’s plan to tie Russia penalties to tariffs on China.

Speaking in Kyiv ahead of next week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he is due to meet Trump, Zelenskyy said allies should not “waste time” in confronting the Kremlin.

“If the war continues and there are no moves towards peace we expect sanctions,” he told reporters, adding that punitive measures should follow if Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses direct talks or rejects a ceasefire.

Trump has promised “major sanctions” against Moscow but conditioned them on Europe halting oil purchases from Russia and on Nato backing US tariffs on China, a key Russian trade partner. The proposal has raised alarms in Kyiv.

In remarks from his presidential office, Zelenskyy said linking sanctions to wider geopolitical bargaining risks diluting pressure on the Kremlin.

“President Trump expects strong action from Europe. I think we are wasting a lot of time if sanctions are not imposed or some steps are not taken, that we very much expect from him [Trump],” he said, as reported by Politico.

Zelenskyy’s comments came after Russia launched one of its heaviest aerial assaults in months, firing 40 missiles and some 580 drones in overnight strikes. At least three people were killed and dozens injured, he said Saturday.

In Dnipro, “a missile with cluster munitions directly struck an apartment building,” the president wrote on social media, sharing images of blazing cars, a damaged high-rise and rescue workers pulling civilians from the rubble. Regional governor Sergiy Lysak confirmed one person had died and 30 others were wounded in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

Ukraine also mounted a retaliatory strike that killed four people in Russia’s Samara region, according to local governor Dmitry Azarov, one of the deadliest cross-border attacks claimed by Kyiv since the invasion began in 2022.

Efforts to arrange direct talks have stalled, with Moscow dismissing the prospect of a Zelenskyy-Putin meeting. “We expect sanctions if there is no meeting between the leaders or, for example, no ceasefire,” Zelenskyy said in comments released by the Ukrainian presidency. “We are ready for a meeting with Putin. I have spoken about this. Both bilateral and trilateral. He is not ready.”

Western diplomats told NBC News that Zelenskyy’s frustration reflects broader concern in Kyiv that Washington’s shifting strategy, especially Trump’s bid to fold China into the sanctions calculus, could leave Ukraine exposed as the war grinds on.

With inputs from agencies