On Sunday, US President Donald Trump announced that he was pausing a set of sanctions aimed at Russia in order to keep Moscow engaged in talks over the conflict in Ukraine. In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said he was "in the process of negotiating peace" and did not want to take any action that might push Russia away from the negotiating table. The move follows a series of statements from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warning that aligning with Russian President Vladimir Putin would be a "historic mistake." Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev described the suspension as "an important and truly historic moment," noting that the sanctions, passed by the US Congress and signed into law in September, would have caused "serious damage" to both the US and global markets. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized the action as a 60‑day pause to assess the economic impact on the United States and the wider world. In the same post, Trump claimed that Zelensky "doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did," suggesting the Ukrainian leader could have struck a better deal two years earlier. Zelensky has repeatedly called for an end to hostilities and has argued that Putin is unwilling to pursue peace since Russia's full‑scale invasion began in February 2022. Relations between Washington and Kyiv have grown strained after a recent agreement to import Russian diesel, a deal that critics say effectively funds Russia's war effort. Despite sanctions, Russia continues to export oil, with about half of its crude shipments going to China and roughly 37 % to India, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. At a European Union summit, Zelensky remarked that it was pleasant to be among "real leaders," even as he voiced concerns that the US might lift additional sanctions on Russia. The proposal to import Russian diesel, intended to lower US energy prices, has drawn criticism from Ukraine and its European allies, who view it as supporting Russia's war machine. Disruptions to Starlink, a satellite system supplied by the United States that Ukraine uses for military communications, have also raised worries that the US is hampering Kyiv's defensive capabilities. US officials have attributed the slowdown to technical issues, while Zelensky said tests conducted on EU territory showed the service operating at higher speeds. Trump has denied any intentional slowing of the network or any cessation of intelligence sharing with Ukraine.