【By Observer Net, Chen Sijia】According to China Central Television, on July 28 local time, US President Trump said he was "very disappointed" with Russian President Putin and would shorten the previous 50-day deadline for reaching a Ukraine-Russia peace agreement. In response, Russia's Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Medvedev stated that the US measures could lead to an escalation of the conflict.
Medvedev and Trump quickly engaged in a "verbal battle." On July 29, Medvedev posted on the social platform X: "Trump is playing a ultimatum game with Russia, whether it's 50 days or 10 days, he should remember two things: Russia is not Israel or Iran; each new ultimatum is a threat, a step toward war. Not a war between Russia and Ukraine, but a war with his own country."
Medvedev warned Trump: "Don't follow the path of 'Sleepy Joe'!"
Russian Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Medvedev, Visual China
On July 31, Trump responded on his self-created social platform "Truth Social," first criticizing India's trade with Russia: "I don't care how India treats Russia. They can team up and ruin their stagnant economy, I don't care. We have almost no business with India, their tariffs are too high, the highest in the world."
The US-India trade negotiations have stalled, and Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all Indian goods starting from August 1 local time. Trump also criticized India for continuing to purchase Russian oil and weapons, claiming to impose additional "punishments" on India.
Trump then warned Medvedev to "be careful with his words," writing: "Russia and the US have almost no business dealings. Let's keep it that way. Tell Medvedev, that failed Russian former president who thinks he's still the president, to be careful. He's stepping into a very dangerous situation!"
In response to Trump's remarks, Medvedev posted on the social platform "Telegram" on July 31: "If a few words from a former Russian president can cause such a nervous reaction from the so-called strong US president, it clearly means that Russia is right on everything and will continue to go its own way."
Regarding Trump's threats against the Russian and Indian economies, Medvedev said: "As for the claims about India and Russia's 'stagnant economy' and 'stepping into danger'—well, he might as well recall his favorite movie about 'The Walking Dead,' think about how dangerous 'Death Hand' is."
What Medvedev referred to as the "Death Hand" is the automatic nuclear retaliation system known as "Perimeter" (Периметр) in Russia. According to the introduction, this system was developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War to counter American nuclear deterrence, aiming to automatically launch nuclear missiles to retaliate against enemies if all command personnel and command centers were destroyed. This system is called "Death Hand" by the West.
On July 28, Trump said he was "very disappointed" with Russian President Putin and would shorten the previous 50-day deadline for achieving a Ukraine-Russia peace agreement. Trump said he would set a new deadline, "about 10 to 12 days from today, there's no reason to wait any longer. I wanted to be generous, but we just don't see any progress."
US President Trump, video screenshot
Previously, on July 14, Trump had issued a 50-day ultimatum to Russia. He threatened that if Russia did not reach an agreement with Ukraine within that period, the US would increase economic sanctions on Russia and impose tariffs of about 100%.
On July 29 local time, when asked about the exact deadline, Trump replied: "From today, 10 days. Then you know, we will impose tariffs and other things, I don't know if it will affect Russia, because they obviously want to continue the war. But we will continue to impose tariffs and take other measures, which may affect them or may not, but it should."
Additionally, after Trump announced he would shorten the deadline, Republican Senator Lindsay Graham also posted on social media threatening Russia, writing: "Those who think President Trump isn't serious about ending the bloody conflict between Ukraine and Russia will soon find themselves completely wrong. You will also realize that Joe Biden is no longer the president. Go back to the negotiation table quickly."
Medvedev retorted to Graham: "You or Trump cannot decide when to 'go to the peace negotiation table.' When all our military operation objectives are achieved, the negotiations will end. First, take care of America, old man!"
In response to Trump's threats, Russian President's Press Secretary Peskov said on July 30 that Russia has become accustomed to dealing with Western sanctions, "We have long been subjected to a large number of sanctions, but our economy continues to operate. In this regard, we have some immunity."
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zakharova stated that Russia has noticed Trump's statements, but threats cannot have a positive impact on normalizing Russia-US relations. Zakharova said that Russia cannot completely avoid the impact of sanctions, but knows how to deal with them, "and even be able to turn them into its own interests."
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