President Donald Trump said the U.S. has “just about” lifted the intelligence pause on Ukraine, adding that his administration has to do anything it can to get Ukrainians serious about making a deal to end the war with Russia.
“You know, I say they don’t have the cards. Nobody really has the cards,” Trump told reporters during a gaggle on Air Force One on Sunday evening. “Russia doesn’t have the cards…What you have to do is you have to make a deal, and you have to stop the killing. It’s a senseless war, and we’re going to get it stopped.”
On Friday, Fox News Digital learned from three sources familiar with the situation that the U.S. was continuing to share some defensive intelligence with Ukraine to protect it against incoming Russian strikes.
Federal intelligence, the work of the CIA, FBI and human intelligence, and data that helps with offensive Ukrainian strikes against Russia had already been paused.
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When asked during the gaggle if he would consider lifting the intel pause on Ukraine, Trump said the U.S. had.
“We, we just about have. I mean, we really just about have,” he said. “And we want to do anything we can to get Ukraine to be serious about getting something done.”
Trump also noted that he thinks Ukraine will sign the minerals deal, but he wants them to want peace at the moment.
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When asked how Ukraine should show it wants peace, Trump said they have not shown it to the extent he thinks they should.
“I think right now they haven’t, but I think they will be, and I think it’s going to become evident over the next two or three days,” the president said, adding that we have to have peace over anything. “This week, hundreds of people died in cities in Ukraine, and we got to get it stopped. It would have never happened if I was president.”
During the nearly 10-minute gaggle with reporters, Trump fielded questions on a variety of topics, including the types of sanctions or tariffs he may impose on Russia.
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The president explained that he and his team had been looking at their options, but his focus was on a few big meetings coming up in Saudi Arabia, which will include Russia and Ukraine.
“We’ll see if we can get something done,” Trump said. “A lot of people died this week, as you know, in Ukraine – not only Ukrainians but Russians. So, I think everybody wants to see it get done. We’re going to make a lot of progress, I believe, this week.”
Trump was also asked what he would say to Americans watching their retirement accounts freefall from their highest in years amid concerns about tariffs.
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The president told the reporter the tariffs “are going to be the greatest thing we’ve ever done as a country,” adding that they will “make our country rich again.”
The tariffs, Trump explained, will bring companies and factories back, noting that 90,000 factories in the U.S. had closed since the beginning of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between the U.S., Canada and Mexico, which was in effect from 1994 to 2020.
At the end of his time with reporters, Trump was asked if he was worried about a recession, after hesitating on the same question when asked by FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo.
“Of course you hesitate. All I know is…we’re going to take in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs, and we’re going to become so rich you’re not going to know where to spend all that money,” Trump said. “I’m telling you; you just watch. We’re going to have jobs. We’re going to have open factories. It’s going to be great.”
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