(TNND) — A ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine remains a long shot after President Donald Trump pushed up his deadline for Russia to make a deal or face sanctions.

Mark N. Katz, a Russian foreign policy expert, said Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn't really want to bargain.

And Putin is prepared to sacrifice more Russian soldiers in Ukraine, Katz said.

“I think that Putin is willing to pay the human cost,” he said.

Both sides are suffering, and the Russians are advancing slowly, Katz said.

With ceasefire talks stalled, Trump said Monday that he’s giving Putin 10 to 12 days to stop the fighting or face sanctions and secondary tariffs.

A couple of weeks ago, Trump threatened Putin with "very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days."

Trump has now cut the timeline for a deal in about half.

“There's no reason to wait,” Trump told reporters during his trip to Scotland. “If you know what the answer is going to be, why wait?"

Katz, a professor emeritus of government and politics at George Mason University, said Ukraine has been willing to cooperate with Trump on a ceasefire.

But Trump is showing his frustration with Putin dragging his feet.

So, Trump realized it’s best to just get to the sanctions sooner.

“I'm sure the Ukrainians and others were encouraging him to do just that,” Katz said.

Trump seems to be genuinely interested in conflict resolution, Katz said.

But Katz is skeptical that tariffs or sanctions will move the needle.

The secondary tariffs would target Russia’s trading partners.

“Someone like Putin really doesn't care, and especially the secondary tariffs,” Katz said. “In other words, the ones who would suffer would be the biggest buyers of Russian petroleum: India, China. So, I'm sure from Putin's point of view is that if Trump wants to worsen his relations with India and China, that's fine with Putin. Because what he's betting on is that India and China will keep buying Russian oil. China certainly will. They might even be able to get it at a cheaper price.”

There's never been much trade between the U.S. and Russia, Katz said. So, additional sanctions would have diminishing returns.

There’s no sign that Putin is budging off his hard-line demands.

And Katz said that’s unlikely to change unless another problem arises for Putin, such as a domestic threat to his power. Putin might not end the war unless he believes doing so is necessary for his own survival, Katz said.

Putin wants the Ukrainians to retreat from more territory and accept limits on their armed forces, Katz said.

He wants the West to end military assistance to Ukraine and formally declare that Ukraine will never become a NATO member.

But Katz said Ukrainians would be very fearful that giving in to Putin’s demands would just set them up for invasion later.

“A guy like Putin, he really seems to think he's doing well,” Katz said. “Why should he make any concessions for the sake of peace?"

Russia already controls over 44,000 square miles of Ukraine, or close to a fifth of the country, including Crimea and parts of Donbas that Russia had seized before its 2022 invasion.

Russia has taken over nearly 28,000 square miles of Ukraine since its invasion three years ago, according to the Russia Matters project at Harvard. That’s an area roughly half the size of New York state.

Trump said the Russian economy is small compared to the amount of land and resources it possesses.

“Russia could be so rich,” Trump said to the reporters. “It could be so rich, it could be thriving like practically no other country.”

Russia has the 11th-largest economy in the world.

Trump said Putin should want to make a deal “based on common sense.”

“Instead, they spend all their money on war. They spend everything on war and killing people, and it doesn't make sense to me,” Trump said. “I thought he would want to end this thing quickly. I really felt it was going to end, but every time I think it's going to end, he kills people.”

Katz said Trump is a businessman who sees making money as a powerful incentive.

Putin is less concerned with money than with geopolitical influence, Katz said.

Katz said Trump is disappointed with Putin after not having to deal with the Russian leader much in his first term.

“I think he's coming more and more to understand just how difficult a character Putin is,” Katz said.