Republican lawmakers are urging President Trump to take a much tougher line against Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the war in Ukraine, arguing that Putin is not serious about peace.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said Monday that the Senate has a Russia sanctions bill that is “ready to go” if the White House gives him the green light, noting the legislation has strong bipartisan support.
Republican confidence in Trump’s approach to the peace talks fell after Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov skipped a round of talks with American negotiators in Istanbul last week.
Trump tried to jump-start the talks Monday by speaking to Putin for more than two hours in a phone call, but the conversation failed to achieve a breakthrough on the war in Ukraine.
“I think Vladimir Putin is a liar and that they’re always going to ask for too much, and they’re going to use that as a pretext to continue to kill, rape and kidnap Ukrainians,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said.
Tillis said administration officials “need to lean into Putin and let him know that we’ll be there for the duration if he doesn’t come to terms” on a peace deal.
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Trump needs to take a harder line in talks with Ukraine.
“They should be treated as the aggressors that they are, as the war criminals that they are, particularly Mr. Putin,” Wicker said. “Our negotiators should realize that there’s not a word of truth that comes out of Vladimir Putin’s mouth.
“He will never keep any promise that he ever makes. He is totally interested in domination of his neighbors. That needs to be recognized,” Wicker warned.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said he’s worried Putin is “stringing the U.S. and President Trump along” though he “applauded” Trump for making an effort to end the war.
“You can’t have a peace deal without good-faith negotiators on both sides, and I’m concerned that Putin is not negotiating in good faith; he’s just stringing the U.S. and President Trump along,” he said.
Cornyn noted that Trump said Monday that Russia and Ukraine need to negotiate directly.
“We’ll see what comes out of that, but based on Putin’s past behavior, I’m not real optimistic,” he said.
Trump posted on Truth Social after his call with Putin that Russian and Ukraine would “immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire.”
Asked later Monday if he thinks Putin is truly interested in reaching a peace deal, Trump said, “I do.”
Trump, however, backed away from Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s comments predicting the president would meet face-to-face with Putin to negotiate a peace deal.
GOP lawmakers are growing increasingly skeptical that Trump can persuade Putin to agree to a deal and believe he needs to take a harder line by threatening tougher sanctions.
Thune, who in the past has criticized Putin and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, said Monday that the Senate has a bipartisan bill ready to place tough sanctions on Russia if Trump wants to go in that direction.
“If the White House concludes that tougher sanctions are in order, we’re here for it. We’ve got a bill ready to go that has an overwhelming bipartisan majority of senators on it. And if sanctions is a necessary part of getting the Russians to the table to negotiate in good faith, then so be it,” Thune said.
“We’ll try and work with the administration on that,” he added.
Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) introduced legislation in April to place sanctions against Russia and actors who support Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
The measure, which has more than 70 co-sponsors, would place tariffs on countries that purchase Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products.
Graham has been in touch with European ministers to negotiate a broader sanctions agreement against Russia.
Thune declared after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 that “the United States, NATO, and Ukraine must not back down to Vladimir Putin’s demands to undermine regional security or yield to his visions of remaking a malign Soviet sphere of influence.”
Trump promised during the 2024 campaign to end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of being sworn into office, but he has failed to gain much traction with Putin over the past four months.
Finland President Alexander Stubb said at a security conference in Estonia that Trump is losing patience with Russia.
Stubb has been in contact with Graham on the sanctions package that could come to the Senate floor.
Trump’s relationship with Putin has frayed over the past three months as the Russian president has failed to demonstrate any real interest in a peace deal.
Putin on Monday declined to agree to the Trump administration’s proposal for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, which Ukraine had agreed to.
Trump, nevertheless, put a positive spin on the day’s talks, calling the “tone and spirit” of the conversation “excellent.”
Vice President Vance said earlier this month that Russia is asking for “too much” to end the fighting.
“Right now, the Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions, in order to end the conflict. We think they’re asking for too much,” he said at a conference in Washington.
Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its troops from four regions of the country partially occupied by Russian troops, something Zelensky rejected Monday.
Zelensky met with Trump during Pope Francis’s funeral in Rome this month and again with Vance and Rubio this past weekend.
The Ukrainian president said after meeting with Vance and Rubio that he “reaffirmed that Ukraine is ready to be engaged in real diplomacy.”