Ukraine war stretches past 4 years after Trump sanctions waiver
Fighting continues as the president reverses a recent sanctions law, ending a brief period of renewed pressure on Moscow.
By Henry Wilson ·
More than four and a half years have passed since the start of the war in Ukraine, with active fighting continuing despite President Donald Trump's campaign pledges to end the conflict quickly. The war has persisted through multiple diplomatic attempts by the administration to reach a settlement.
During the 2023 presidential campaign, Trump told supporters in Council Bluffs, Iowa, that he would settle the war before taking office. "I want people to stop dying. That's the side I'm on," he said at a rally on July 7, 2023. He repeated similar promises dozens of times during that cycle.
Since taking office, Trump has met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy twice at the White House. He also met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, in August 2025. Following that meeting, Trump described the session as productive, noting that the two leaders agreed on many points but had not reached a final deal.
On September 18, Trump signed bipartisan legislation named after the late Sen. Lindsey Graham. The law imposed specific sanctions and tariffs on Russia. Just one month later, on October 16, Trump signed an executive order that waived those sanctions, effectively removing the new economic pressures from the conflict timeline.
The reversal of the Graham Act sanctions marks the latest shift in U.S. policy toward Moscow. The war remains active, with no formal agreement signed between the warring nations to date.
Source: KPTV
