The US President has imposed sanctions on the two biggest Russian petroleum firms following the conclusion that the Russian leader was not being “honest and forthright” in Ukraine talks, the US treasury chief stated.
These restrictions targeting Rosneft and Lukoil came a day after a planned Trump-Putin summit in Budapest got postponed, with Washington voicing its frustration at the absence of advances in ceasefire negotiations with Russia.
“Given President Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war, the Treasury Department is imposing sanctions on the two biggest Russian oil companies that finance Russia’s military operations,” America’s Treasury chief, Scott Bessent, said on Wednesday.
He warned that the Treasury was ready “to implement additional measures if necessary” to back the President’s initiatives to end the war.
In an interview with a business news network before the official announcement, Bessent said the move was “one of the largest sanctions that we have imposed against the Russian Federation”.
The President has held off on fresh restrictions for months, explaining he aimed to convince Putin to reach a peace agreement despite growing frustration with him. But the president’s patience seemed to expire in the six days after he talked to Putin over the phone the previous week.
EU nations similarly declared additional restrictions on the Russian government on Wednesday. They include a ban on importing liquefied natural gas from the country by the year 2027, the sanctioning of oil tankers used by Moscow and travel restrictions on Russia’s diplomatic personnel.
