Trump waives several Russia sanctions as row with Zelensky intensifies
Story By Staff Reporter
US President Donald Trump has suspended several Russian sanctions. He says the move is an effort to keep Moscow at the negotiating table.
“I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. He added that he didn’t want to “do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table”.
Zelensky said on Sunday that siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin would be a “historic mistake”.
Moscow welcomes the suspension
Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev called Trump’s order “an important and truly historic moment”. He said the sanctions would have inflicted “serious damage” on the US and global market. Congress passed them, and Trump signed them into law in September.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the suspension as a 60-day pause. During that time, officials will analyse the potential impact on the US and global economies.
Trump turns on Zelensky
In his Truth Social post, Trump also said Zelensky “doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did”. He added that “he could have made a better deal two years ago than he can now”.
Zelensky has pushed for an end to the fighting. He has repeatedly said Putin doesn’t want peace. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Diesel deal strains relations
Relations between Washington and Kyiv frayed after the US struck a controversial deal to import Russian diesel last week. Trump says the deal will help lower US energy prices, which have skyrocketed during the Iran war. Ukraine and its European allies criticised the plan.
Zelensky said the deal was tantamount to the US investing in Russia’s war effort.
Trump announced the deal and said Zelensky was “more difficult to deal with” than Putin. Speaking at a European Union summit afterwards, Zelensky said it was nice to be among “real leaders”.
Zelensky has repeatedly pushed for stringent sanctions to limit the funds Russia can use for its war effort. After the latest US move, however, he said he believed the Trump administration would lift more sanctions.
Russian oil still finds buyers
Despite the international sanctions, Russia still exports oil, often at attractive discounts. Much of it goes to China and India. According to the think-tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), China takes about half of Russia’s crude exports. India accounts for about 37%.
Starlink disruption raises concerns
Disruption to Starlink has heightened concerns that Trump is siding with Russia. Ukraine uses the US-provided satellite system, and the disruption hampered Kyiv’s ability to defend itself against Russian attacks.
Zelensky said US officials linked the speed restrictions to technical issues. However, he said Ukraine tested Starlink on EU territory and found it ran at higher speeds.
Trump has denied deliberately slowing down the network. He also denied Zelensky’s accusation that the US stopped sharing defence intelligence.
