Donald Trump imposes sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies in major policy shift | US News Aitrend

Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies and expressed frustration with Vladimir Putin.

In a major political shift, new restrictions were unveiled against Rosneft and Lukoil – as well as dozens of subsidiaries – due to Russia’s “lack of serious engagement in a peace process aimed at ending the war in Ukraine”.

Last war in Ukraine: US imposes sanctions on largest Russian oil companies

This caused the price of oil to rise, with the market expecting lower flows.

After hitting its lowest level in five months on Monday, the benchmark oil price rose 3.4%.

A barrel of Brent crude now costs $64.73, a high last reached almost two weeks ago.

“Now is the time to stop the killings and establish an immediate ceasefire,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

“In light of President Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war, Treasury is sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil companies that fund the Kremlin’s war machine. We encourage our allies to join us and adhere to these sanctions.”

The move marks a significant shift for the Trump administration, which has vacillated between pressuring Moscow and taking a more conciliatory approach aimed at securing peace in Ukraine.

Analysis: Sanctions are a punch in the stomach for Moscow

The new US sanctions are not a slap in the face: they are a punch in the guts of Moscow’s war economy.

Oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil are the two engines pumping money into Russia’s military veins.

Washington presented the bold move as an attempt to “degrade the Kremlin’s ability to generate revenue for its war machine.”

Oil is the blood of Russia, and the Trump Treasury just cut off the blood flow.

But every blow in the ring carries a risk of self-inflicted pain, and there is the potential for collateral damage.

Read David’s full analysis here.

Trump frustrated by Putin

The US president resisted pressure to impose energy sanctions on Russia, hoping that Mr Putin would agree to end the fighting. But with no end in sight, he said he felt it was time.

Mr Trump said he had a “very good relationship” with his Russian counterpart, but said he had to cancel their planned meeting because “it didn’t feel right”.

In a sign of growing frustration, he told reporters: “We didn’t feel like we were going to get to where we need to get to. So I canceled the event. But we will in the future.

“I have good conversations. And then they don’t go anywhere. They just don’t go anywhere.”

He also suggested that sanctions could be lifted if the Russian president was willing to cooperate in peace talks.

“We hope these sanctions will not last long,” he said in the Oval Office. “We hope the war will be settled.”

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Putin-Trump talks: Moscow’s view

Trump wants Xi to help with Ukraine

On the eve of a meeting next week with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, Mr. Trump said he would like Beijing to help pressure Moscow to end the fighting.

“I think he (Xi) can have a great influence on Putin. I think he can have a great influence… he is a respected man. He is a very strong leader of a very great country. And we will definitely talk about Russia and Ukraine,” he said.

The Chinese president and the Russian leader have formed a strategic alliance between their countries.

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Why the Tomahawks are off the table

Ukraine refused Tomahawk missiles

However, Mr Trump warned that he was not ready to provide Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles, as kyiv has requested.

He said it would take up to a year for Ukrainians to learn how to use these “highly complex” weapons.

“The only way to shoot a Tomahawk… is to shoot it. And we’re not going to do that.

“It takes a year of intense training to learn how to use it, and we know how to use it, and we’re not going to teach it to other people.”

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His comments came as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met with the president at the White House.

In an effort to quell any discontent over the Tomahawks, Mr. Rutte went out of his way to emphasize that the weapons the United States is selling to Europe to supply to Ukraine have been critical in helping stop many attacks.

“We need to make sure the air defense systems are in place, and we need the American systems to do that, and the Europeans are paying for that,” Rutte said.

“This is exactly the type of action we needed, and the president is delivering it and doing everything possible to get this job done.”

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