Trump Promises ‘Top Of The Line’ Weapons For NATO, Warns Of 100% Tariffs On Russia Without Deal

President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the U.S. would be sending ‘top of the line’ weapons to NATO and warned that Russia could be hit with 100% secondary tariffs if a peace deal is not reached within 50 days.

“We’re going to be sending them weapons, and they’ll be paying for them,” Trump said during the meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. “We’re going to make top-of-the-line weapons, and they’ll be sent to NATO. NATO may choose to have certain of them sent to other countries…” 

“I’m disappointed in President Putin because I thought we would have had a deal two months ago. But it doesn’t seem to get there. So, based on that, we’re going to be doing secondary tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days. It’s very simple. And, they’ll be at 100%,” he added.

U.S. markets were mixed Monday morning. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) declined 0.24%, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, slipped 0.38%. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) edged up 0.12%.

When asked about a 500% tariff on Russia, Trump said on Monday the number does not matter after a certain point and that 100% levies will serve the purpose. The President said he felt he had a deal with Russia on the Ukraine war about four times. “And here we are still talking."

"I thought we should have had a deal done a long time ago, but it just keeps going on and on and on," he said, adding that a lot of Russian soldiers and Ukrainians are dying in the current war.

During the meeting, Rutte said that Europe is “stepping up.” He explained that Trump made the decision so that Ukraine can maintain its defenses against Russia, and added that Europe will be paying for it. 

Rutte expressed that the deal was “great news” for Ukraine, adding that Ukraine will be able to get its hands on “really massive numbers of military equipment” for air defense, missiles, and ammunition through this deal.

He added that this new deal builds on the success of the NATO summit, where its 32 members agreed to increase their spending to 5% of their GDP on defense and security by 2035. 

Trump’s remarks come after he signaled last week that he would be making a ‘major’ statement on Ukraine come Monday. On Sunday night, the President told reporters that “sophisticated” military equipment would be heading to Ukraine, including Patriot air defense missiles. 

"Putin really surprised a lot of people," Trump explained. "He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening. So there's a little bit of a problem there. I don't like it."

When asked if only Patriot missiles are being sent to Ukraine or Patriot batteries, Trump said, “Everything. It’s everything.” He explained that the countries in Europe would be sending their own Patriots to Ukraine, with the U.S. sending those countries replacements.

In a post on Truth Social, before the meeting, Trump said the U.S. has been "ripped off" on trade and military spending for decades, claiming it has cost the country trillions of dollars.

"Countries should sit back and say: thank you for the many-years-long free ride, but we know you now have to do what’s right for America. We should respond by saying: thank you for understanding the situation we are in. Greatly appreciated!" he wrote.

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Editor's Note: An earlier version of the story incorrectly mentioned a peace deal as a trade deal in the first paragraph.