During a press briefing, Leavitt stumbled when asked to account for the president’s paltry plan to impose tariffs on Russia. She’d previously claimed that U.S. sanctions “preclude any meaningful trade” between the two countries, as a means of explaining why Russia was exempt from the president’s sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs.

Ukraine proposed new ceasefire talks to Russia over the weekend as a new 50-day deadline from President Donald Trump for the two warring nations to end the conflict looms. Ukrainian

Trump’s tariffs could hit China, India and Brazil especially hard. All three countries are top buyers of Russian fossil fuels.

Putin’s refusal to compromise on Ukraine, say analysts, is a colossal error costing Russia regional influence, lucrative energy markets and its place in the world.