Trump says Putin 'playing with fire' as sanctions pressure grows

Washington: US President Donald Trump warned Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that he was playing with fire, taking a fresh jab at his Russian counterpart...

Washington: US President Donald Trump warned Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that he was "playing with fire," taking a fresh jab at his Russian counterpart as Washington weighs new sanctions against Moscow over the Ukraine war.

Trump's latest broadside showed his frustration with stalled ceasefire talks and comes two days after he called the Kremlin leader "absolutely CRAZY" following a major drone attack on Ukraine.

Moscow, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, insisted it was responding to escalating Ukrainian strikes on its own civilians and accused Kyiv of trying to "disrupt" peace efforts.

Diplomatic efforts to end the war have intensified in recent weeks but Putin has been accused of stalling peace talks.

"What Vladimir Putin doesn't realize is that if it weren't for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He's playing with fire!" Trump said on his Truth Social network.