A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
President Trump set today as a deadline for imposing new sanctions on Russia if it refused to take steps toward ending the war in Ukraine, but now Trump and Vladimir Putin may hold a summit in the coming days. So far, Ukraine does not appear to be included. For more, let's go to NPR's Greg Myre in Ukraine's capital, Kyiv. So, Greg, President Trump has set a lot of deadlines and then ignored a lot of deadlines. So does that look to be the case here with sanctions on Russia?
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Well, it's certainly a strong possibility. Trump was asked Thursday if that deadline still stands. Referring to Putin, Trump said this.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: It's going to be up to him.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: And do you...
TRUMP: We're going to see what he has to say. It's going to be up to him. Very disappointed.
MYRE: So we're seeing a bit of mixed message here. Trump has been highly critical of Putin recently, but he's always been reluctant to impose punitive measures on Russia. This talk of the summit has changed the conversation. We'll probably have to wait and see if the summit happens and what it produces.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah, yet the war goes on. Would a summit under these conditions have any real chance of a breakthrough, though?
MYRE: Well, a real breakthrough is unlikely. U.S.-Russia summits are traditionally planned weeks, if not months, in advance. They're highly choreographed. But this summit could happen on very short notice because Trump and Putin both want it to happen. Trump wants a ceasefire, though he's had no success so far in persuading Putin. And Putin needs Trump on his side or at least a working relationship so he doesn't become further isolated.
MARTÍNEZ: Now, you're in Ukraine. How are Ukrainians looking at all this?
MYRE: Well, with deep skepticism. They believe Putin is, again, buying time, dragging out the war, and hoping to make battlefield gains. Putin keeps hinting he might accept Trump's ceasefire under certain conditions, but this never actually seems to happen.
Now, with all this summit talk, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is taking a low-key approach. He'd like to be included, but that seems unlikely. He has had two phone calls with Trump this week. He described them as positive, but the Ukrainians are worried that Trump and Putin will make some deal at the summit that doesn't include input from Ukraine.
MARTÍNEZ: And finally, one more thing - latest on the battlefield, Greg.
MYRE: Yeah. Russia carried out another big drone strike overnight, hitting several cities, causing civilian casualties. Russia has dramatically stepped up drone attacks in recent months, despite Trump's call for a ceasefire.
MARTÍNEZ: That's NPR's Greg Myre in Kyiv. Greg, thanks.
MYRE: Sure thing, A.
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