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Donald Trump threatens Russia with other “massive” sanctions and tariff threats as the U.S. president turns to pile up pressure on Moscow to promote a peace deal in Ukraine.
Trump’s comments on Friday came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy eased tensions after last week’s open confrontation at the White House, resulting in the U.S. suspension of military aid and intelligence support to Kiev.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials will hold talks in Saudi Arabia next week.
“Based on the fact that Russia is currently absolutely ‘slam’ Ukraine on the battlefield, I strongly consider large-scale bank sanctions, sanctions and tariffs on Russia until a final settlement agreement for a ceasefire and peace is reached.”
“For Russia and Ukraine, before it’s too late, get on the table now. Thank you!!!” he added.
Trump faces criticism from U.S. allies and domestic lawmakers, including some Republicans, for his clash with Zelenskyy. There is growing concern that the White House will hand over all leverage to Russia even before direct negotiations between Moscow and Kiev.
White House officials have previously threatened sanctions on Russia to push President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table, but the U.S. president stressed that message on Friday.
The White House has not provided any details on sanctions and tariffs on Russia.
Russia remains under full sanctions imposed by former President Joe Biden, including its financial services, defense and energy sectors. The United States also targets sanctions against Russia’s top business leaders and oligarchs.
Alexandra Prokopenko, an academician at the Carnegie Russian European Center in Berlin, said sanctions cut Russia’s trade surplus by more than half, from $337 billion in 2022, the first year of the war, to just $15.1 billion last year.
The most painful measure is sanctions on oil exports, forcing Russian companies to sell at discounted prices, while increasing their logistics and financial costs, as well as financial sanctions on Russian companies in international transactions and sanctions on Russian airlines.
Prokopenko said the thorough approach taken by the Biden administration means that Trump is almost unable to exert pressure. “There is no longer a sanction for the bazooka, and the United States cannot cause real pain,” she added.
But Trump officials say Biden’s sanctions are invalid, especially about Russia’s most important energy sector.
“The main factor that keeps Russian war machine financing is the huge sanctions on Russian energy by the Biden administration,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the New York Economic Club on Thursday.
He suggested that the Biden administration has imposed more severe sanctions over “worry about pressure on rising U.S. energy prices during the election season.”
“In the past three years, there has been no fair and wealthy sanctions support, what is the focus of the massive U.S. military and financial support over the past three years?” he asked.
The White House had previously been pending that sanctions on Russia could be relaxed if a peace agreement was reached with Ukraine, and even when it reached an agreement, officials even pointed out business opportunities for U.S. investors in Russia.
Tariffs on Russian imports will have limited impact since the collapse of the country’s deal with the United States in recent years. According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. imports from Russia will be $3 billion in 2024.
