White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing on October 23 that U.S. President Donald Trump has always stated he would impose sanctions against Russia when he deems it appropriate and necessary.

“And yesterday was exactly that kind of day. I think the president has also long expressed his dissatisfaction with Vladimir Putin and, frankly, with both sides of this war. And he has always said that for good peace negotiations to happen, both sides need to be invested in a good peace agreement. And he believes that, unfortunately, he hasn’t seen sufficient interest from Russia recently in advancing peace. Therefore, a meeting between these two leaders is not ruled out. I think the president and the entire administration hope that one day it will happen,” Leavitt said.