President Donald Trump, during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday at the White House, called his so-called “good friend” Vladimir Putin a “useless bullshitter” and said he is “very strongly” considering supporting a major sanctions bill aimed at punishing Russia’s energy sector.

The bill has been ready to go for months, waiting for Trump to either kill it or push it forward. Now, for the first time, he’s hinting he might actually back it.

The legislation would hit countries importing Russian energy with high tariffs and go further by targeting any foreign companies helping Russia produce oil and gas.

It already has wide support in Congress from both Republicans and Democrats, but Republican leaders have refused to move it without clear direction from Trump. “I’m looking at it. It’s an optional bill,” he said. “It’s totally at my option. They pass it totally at my option, and to terminate totally at my option. And I’m looking at it very strongly.”

Trump questions sanctions while showing signs of flipping

Though he appears closer to signing the bill, Trump hasn’t been consistent. Last month, while meeting with Germany’s Chancellor, he said the bill was “very harsh,” and told allies in private he didn’t think sanctions would actually stop Putin.

But his tone on Tuesday was different. Instead of trashing the legislation, he left the door wide open. One administration official, speaking under condition of anonymity, said the White House now sees this shift as Trump trying to increase his leverage over Putin, not necessarily confirming he’ll sign anything.

The move comes as Trump’s relationship with Putin hits a low point. He once believed the Russian leader would help quickly bring the war in Ukraine to an end. That didn’t happen. In fact, things got worse. Putin refused to show up to a peace summit in Istanbul organized by the United States, which was supposed to be a step toward ending the war. Instead, he escalated attacks on Kyiv and several other cities, signaling that diplomacy was off the table.

“I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin,” Trump said back in May, before writing on social media, “He has gone absolutely CRAZY.” That wasn’t the first time he expressed frustration, but it was the clearest sign yet that their earlier connection had disintegrated.

At the NATO summit in the Netherlands weeks later, Trump was notably friendlier toward European allies and held a long one-on-one with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president. The shift didn’t go unnoticed.

Trump says Putin lied, promises to resume Ukraine aid

By last Thursday, Trump spent over an hour speaking with Putin by phone. On Tuesday, he made it clear the conversation didn’t go well. “We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin, [if] you want to know the truth,” he said, sounding visibly annoyed.

The timing of that comment matters. Just one day earlier, he announced he plans to resume military shipments to Ukraine, shipments that were paused last week after the Pentagon flagged concerns about US weapons stockpiles running low.

The delay came after a defense review said continued aid to Ukraine could hurt American military readiness. Trump pushed back on claims that he was briefed ahead of time. “I don’t know,” he said Tuesday when asked who in the Pentagon was behind the decision. “You tell me.” That remark followed mounting pressure to explain the halt in deliveries, especially with Russia continuing strikes and Zelenskyy demanding more support.

The tension between Trump and Putin now looks irreversible. The sanctions bill remains unsigned, but Trump’s shift in tone has put new pressure on Congress to act. The war in Ukraine is still raging, aid is still in question, and for once, Trump sounds like he’s done waiting.

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