Trump: Putin is playing with fire after deadly attacks in Ukraine

United States President Donald Trump has sharply criticized Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin again after Russia concluded a three-day bombing campaign on May 26 with the largest airstrike of the more than three-year war.

Trump said he has so far "protected" Russia from undisclosed painful measures, but suggested he is losing patience as Putin continues to ignore his calls for a ceasefire.

“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t understand is that if it weren’t for me, a lot of bad things would have already happened to Russia – and I mean REALLY BAD THINGS. He’s playing with fire!” Trump said on Truth Social on May 27.

Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev responded to Trump's criticism by hinting at World War III.

“As for Trump’s words that Putin is ‘playing with fire’ and about ‘really bad things’ that could happen to Russia – I know of only one REALLY BAD THING: World War III. I hope Trump understands this!” Medvedev wrote on X.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia fired more than 900 missiles into Ukraine during a three-day bombardment that ended on May 26. Thirteen civilians were killed in the May 25 attacks.

Moscow said it had only hit "military targets" in Ukraine.

The May 26 attack was the largest since the Russian invasion began more than three years ago. The attack came a day after Trump wrote on social media that Putin was "completely insane."

Russian authorities announced on the evening of May 27 that Ukraine had carried out a major drone attack against Russia. According to them, the country's air defenses destroyed 112 Ukrainian drones during the attack.

Before Russia's three-day attack, the G7 group and the US Congress had pushed the administration to impose sanctions on Russia for failing to accept an immediate 30-day ceasefire.

Congress, controlled by Trump's Republicans, has not yet put the latest Russia sanctions bill to a vote.

When asked last week why sanctions were not being imposed on Russia after Putin again ignored calls for a ceasefire, Trump said that would alienate the Kremlin leader at a time when he felt he was making progress.

Sergei Zhuk, a professor at Ball State University and an expert on Russia and Ukraine, said he does not expect Trump's comments on social media to lead to concrete action.

"They will remain at the level of criticism on social media and that's it," said Zhuk, who is also a researcher at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.

"Putin understands that the new US administration will not actively react to these attacks," Zhuk told REL.

Trump has made ending the war in Ukraine a top foreign policy priority since taking office more than four months ago. In March, he called on both sides to immediately accept a 30-day ceasefire.

Zelensky supported Trump's call, but Putin rejected it, demanding that Ukraine first accept certain conditions, including the withdrawal of troops from its territory. This was unacceptable to Kiev.

Experts say Putin is not interested in ending the war now because he believes he is winning it and has not yet accomplished its main goals./ REL