The US President has enforced restrictions on the two biggest Russian oil companies following the conclusion that the Russian leader was not being truthful and direct in negotiations over Ukraine, America’s Treasury Secretary stated.
These restrictions against Rosneft and Lukoil came a day after a scheduled meeting between Trump and Putin in Budapest got postponed, with the US administration voicing its frustration at the lack of progress in peace talks with Russia.
“Due to Putin’s unwillingness to stop this needless conflict, [the] treasury is sanctioning the two biggest Russian petroleum firms that finance Russia’s military operations,” the US treasury secretary, the Secretary, announced this week.
He warned that the Treasury Department was ready “to implement additional measures if necessary” to support Trump’s efforts to conclude the conflict.
Speaking to Fox Business before the official announcement, Bessent remarked the action was “one of the largest sanctions that we have done against the Russian Federation”.
Trump has held off on fresh restrictions for months, explaining he hoped to persuade the Russian President to make peace even amid rising irritation with him. But the president’s patience apparently ran out in the week since he spoke to the Russian leader over the phone the previous week.
EU nations similarly declared new sanctions on the Russian government on the same day. These involve a prohibition on bringing in LNG from Russia by 2027, the blacklisting of oil tankers used by Moscow and travel restrictions on Russian diplomats.
