Special envoy Steve Witkoff heaped praise on Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, the latest sign that Ukrainian and European efforts to get Washington to ramp up pressure on Russia to end the war are failing.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly resisted efforts by Congress and foreign allies to squeeze Putin and Russia, whether by ratcheting up sanctions or stepping up military support for Kyiv.

Trump’s team led by Witkoff and Jared Kushner embarked on yet another round of diplomacy this week, with Witkoff first meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Oslo before traveling to Russia to meet Putin. Kushner, sick with the flu, participated remotely.

Thanking Putin for releasing an American who was wrongfully detained by Russia in eastern Ukraine in the early days of the war in 2022, Witkoff commended the gesture.

“You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian. You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that, I commend you, and I thank you again,” Witkoff said.

The praise stands in stark contrast to Putin’s conduct. He launched a full-scale unprovoked invasion against Ukraine that has killed tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians. He is also wanted as a war criminal by the International Criminal Court, a body Trump and his team have harshly criticized.

Several Republicans lashed out at Witkoff’s use of the term.

“WTF, Steve? Look up the definition of ‘humanitarian,’” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., posted on X. “You should go back to Ukraine and ask the families of the children Putin has kidnapped and murdered whether they agree your friend Putin is a ‘humanitarian.’”

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, responded, “Putin is stone cold killer.”

Just as Ukraine and Europe want to see the U.S. raise the stakes for Russia, Trump and his team are trending in the opposite direction. Trump said Monday he would be open to a trilateral summit with Russia and China and added, “Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine.”

On Friday, Trump paused a sweeping new sanctions package on Russia that was set to take effect this week, again frustrating lawmakers and allies who saw his initial decision to sign the legislation as a sign that Trump might be warming to Zelenskyy somewhat after he had agreed to grant Ukraine a license to produce defensive Patriot missiles.

The U.S. had briefly stopped providing intelligence to Ukraine, but Zelenskyy said Wednesday morning on Fox News that it had fully resumed. He added that an early warning system for ballistic missiles had also resumed after he spoke Tuesday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Ukraine has also reported a speed cap disrupting military Starlink and Starshield connections, which Kyiv uses for battlefield and civilian communications and to guide drones and run secure military communications, respectively.

Zelenskyy told Fox News that Rubio promised to work with U.S. officials to unblock it. “God bless, it will be done,” Zelenskyy said.

It is not clear whether Trump or Elon Musk ultimately ordered the slowdown amid conflicting reports.

Trump’s seemingly rapid shift back toward harsh criticism of Zelenskyy and Ukraine is frustrating to Kyiv’s allies who worry how prepared the country will be for a tough winter.

“It could be that he has access to classified information that we don’t have,” said Leslie Shedd, a former Republican aide on the House Foreign Affairs Committee who is now with the Atlantic Council. “But there’s a piece of me that worries that his world has become so insulated, which happens to presidents, that he’s not getting the right information,” Shedd said about Trump.

Trump’s frustration with Ukraine, however, does not mask the reality that Russia is not ready to take the steps needed to end the fighting, Shedd said.

“The president’s actions are predicated on the fact that he wants the war to end. I just don’t think Russia is willing to do that yet.”

Adam Hudacek and Nour Longi contributed reporting.

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