WASHINGTON 

US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Monday blasted President Donald Trump over his Ukraine policy, accusing him of undermining American interests by aligning himself closely with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Vladimir Putin has spent the entire year punking Donald Trump and the Trump administration," Jeffries told the reporters at the Capitol Hill.

Jeffires said Trump made promises to the American people, yet he continues to break those promises, including his pledge to bring peace to Ukraine.

His remarks came after Trump unveiled a harsher approach toward Russia over its war in Ukraine, pledging a new supply of missiles and advanced weaponry for Kyiv, and giving Moscow a 50-day deadline to agree to a ceasefire or face "very severe" secondary tariffs.

"Donald Trump has spent the first six months of his presidency playing footsie with Vladimir Putin, and the response from Vladimir Putin, a sworn enemy of the United States of America, has been to unleash terror on Ukrainian children, communities and civilians.

"Donald Trump has zero credibility in this area. Is he just now figuring out that Ukraine is a friend to the United States of America and Russia is an enemy?" Jeffries said.

He said the Congress has to act independently in this area.

"We should sanction Russia and continue to keep the pressure on Vladimir Putin and Russia, a sworn enemy of this country, until the Ukrainian people are able to achieve victory for themselves, our NATO allies in Europe and the free world," he added.

Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal introduced a bill on April 1 titled the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 that would impose a 500% tariff on imported goods from countries that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products.