President Donald Trump said Wednesday he would impose high tariffs on Russia if President Vladimir Putin does not bring a stop to the "ridiculous" war in Ukraine.

"Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE," Trump said in a post to Truth Social. "If we don’t make a 'deal,' and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries."

In the post, Trump touted his "very good relationship" with Putin and "love" for the Russian people. But about the ending the war, he added ominously, "We can do it the easy way, or the hard way – and the easy way is always better."

Russia said in response that it would have to see what Trump meant by a "deal."

"We have to see what does the 'deal' mean in President Trump's understanding," said Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations. "He is not responsible for what the U.S. has been doing in Ukraine since 2014, making it 'anti-Russia' and preparing for the war with us, but it is in his power now to stop this malicious policy."

U.S. imports from Russia make up just a small fraction of overall U.S. trade. They totaled around $2.8 billion last year, according to U.S. Census data.

The Biden administration implemented heavy sanctions on Russia in retaliation for the Ukraine invasion. Less than two weeks before Trump's inauguration, the U.S. stepped up its sanctions on two large Russian oil producers and ships carrying Russian oil.

Asked by reporters if he would level additional sanctions on Russia if Putin would not negotiate an end to the war, Trump said "sounds likely."

"The war in Ukraine would have never happened if I were President," he added, echoing a line that he repeated throughout his election campaign.

Trump said meeting with Putin would be arranged

Trump has allowed speculation to balloon about how he would handle the Ukraine war as president. He has implied U.S. aid to Ukraine is overblown, calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "the greatest salesman on Earth."

Trump already missed his self-imposed deadline to end the war within 24 hours of taking hours, which he promised repeatedly as a candidate, including an appearance at a 2023 town hall. During his only presidential debate with Kamala Harris, Trump said he would get the war "settled before I even become president."

Trump said earlier this month that he was arranging a meeting with Putin. "President Putin wants to meet," he said. "He has said that even publicly, and we have to get that war over with. That's a bloody mess."

He did not specify when the meeting would happen, but the Kremlin signaled it might be open to a meeting after Trump took office.

In interviews during the campaign, Vice President JD Vance proposed a plan to freeze Ukraine's borders where they are currently, allowing Russia to keep the territory it has seized and keep Ukraine out of NATO.

The U.S. has provided Ukraine with more than $65 billion in aid since Russia launched its invasion more than three years ago.