Russia rejects Trump’s ultimatum for 50-day ceasefire, insists on continued negotiations

07/17/2025 / By Ramon Tomey

U.S. President Donald Trump demanded a 50-day Ukrainian ceasefire, threatening 100 percent tariffs on Russia’s trade partners. Russia rejected the preconditions as “unacceptable.”
Sergei Ryabkov and Dmitry Medvedev mocked Trump’s tariff threat as “theatrical,” while Dmitry Peskov deferred to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia insists on recognition of annexed territories; Ukraine and the West call it an unprovoked invasion. Positions remain irreconcilable.
Historical ceasefires required lengthy talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised NATO; Russia offered talks only on its terms.
The ongoing conflict has claimed more than 500,000 casualties; Trump’s pressure vs. Putin’s defiance risks escalation or a forced breakthrough.

Russian officials have turned down U.S. President Donald Trump’s demand for a 50-day ceasefire in Ukraine, insisting that negotiations must continue.

Trump issued the ultimatum during a meeting with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Monday, July 14, at the White House. He warned that if a peace deal isn’t ironed out, Washington would impose “very severe tariffs” of up to 100 percent on nations doing business with Russia.

“We’re going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days,” Trump said during his meeting with Rutte. He framed the move as leverage to halt hostilities. But Russian officials declined the real estate mogul’s threat. (Related: Trump warns of “very, very tough” SANCTIONS on both Russia and Ukraine if peace talks collapse.)

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov swiftly rejected the proposal, emphasizing Moscow’s preference for negotiations. “Any attempts to make demands, especially ultimatums, are unacceptable to us,” he told reporters as per CBS News.

“The diplomatic path is preferable for us. [But] if we cannot achieve our goals through diplomacy, then the [special military operation] will continue.”

Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov acknowledged Trump’s remarks as “quite serious,” but deferred to Russian President Vladimir Putin for a definitive response. “We definitely need time to analyze what was said in Washington,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dmitry Medvedev – deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council – dismissed the ultimatum as “theatrical” in a social media post. “Russia didn’t care,” he added.

Will Trump’s ultimatum break the deadlock?

Russia’s rebuke underscores deepening tensions between Washington and Moscow as the war enters its third year with no diplomatic resolution in sight. The stalemate ultimately reflects the broader deadlock in Ukraine negotiations.

Moscow demands international recognition of its annexation of Crimea and occupied eastern territories, a red line for Kyiv and its Western allies. Putin has repeatedly framed the invasion as a defensive measure against NATO expansion. However, both the U.S. and the European Union depict it as an unprovoked land grab.

Historically, ceasefire ultimatums in protracted conflicts have often failed without mutual concessions. The 1953 Korean Armistice and the 1973 Paris Peace Accords, the latter ending U.S. involvement in Vietnam, required years of backchannel talks and battlefield impasses before agreements were reached. Analysts note that Trump’s 50-day deadline faces similar hurdles, given Russia’s entrenched positions and Ukraine’s refusal to concede territory.

Despite the heated rhetoric, both sides signaled cautious openness to dialogue. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised Trump’s pledge to bolster NATO arms deliveries, tweeting that he “thanked [Trump] for the willingness to support Ukraine” in their recent call. Meanwhile, Peskov stressed that Moscow remains “ready to negotiate” – albeit on its own terms.

The conflict’s human toll continues mounting. Since Russia’s February 2022 special military operation, over 500,000 soldiers have been killed or wounded across both sides per U.S. estimates. Meanwhile, millions of Ukrainian civilians remain displaced.

With Trump’s tariff threat looming and Putin showing no signs of retreat, the war’s trajectory appears locked in a cycle of escalation and attrition – one that recalls the intractable standoffs of the Cold War. As the 50-day countdown begins, the world watches whether economic pressure can achieve what diplomacy and bloodshed have not: a pause in the killing, or at least a path to talk.

Listen to Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov insisting that Russia isn’t concerned about Trump’s harsh rhetoric in this clip.

This video is from the Cynthia’s Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.