US President Donald Trump is ready to ramp up sanctions on Russia as the Ukraine war drags on without any signs of stopping. Speaking to reporters in Washington on Sunday, Trump confirmed he’s prepared for the next round of measures against Moscow’s stubborn stance. When asked if he’d move forward with phase two of the sanctions, he simply said, “Yeah, I am.” But he kept details under wraps—no hints on what exactly he’s planning or who might feel the heat.
This comes after Trump’s big summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin more than three weeks ago, where he pushed hard for peace talks to end the Ukraine conflict. He had high hopes, but so far, no meeting has happened between Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky. Instead, Russia has stepped up its attacks on Ukraine, making things even worse.
White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told CBS News that with these intensified Russian strikes, expect a lot of chatter soon about ramping up Russia sanctions and their timing. “It’s up to the president in the end,” Hassett said. “But yes, it’s a very disappointing set of affairs.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has an idea to tighten the screws on buyers of Russian oil. In an NBC interview, he suggested teaming up with the European Union (EU) for secondary sanctions—basically, penalties on countries that keep buying Russian oil to force Putin to the negotiating table. “If the US and the EU can come in, do more sanctions, secondary tariffs on the countries that buy Russian oil, the Russian economy will be in full collapse, and that will bring President Putin to the table,” Bessent explained. He added, “We are prepared to increase pressure on Russia, but we need our European partners to follow us.”
But here’s the catch: the EU itself is still buying Russian gas directly and even getting products indirectly through countries like India that use Russian oil. That makes it tricky for the EU to slap sanctions on India while keeping its own dealings with Russia going. Trump has already hit India with a 25% punitive tariff for buying Russian oil, while sparing China for now—though he hinted back in mid-August that he might rethink that in “two or three weeks.”
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky isn’t holding back on calling out what he sees as double standards in Europe. In an ABC News interview, he said, “They (some Europeans) continue to buy oil and Russian gas. And this is not fair. If to be open and to be clear, it’s not fair.” Still, Zelensky backs the sanctions on India, calling it the “right idea” to target countries making deals with Russia. When reminded of Trump’s recent Truth Social post after a meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Putin, and China’s President Xi Jinping—”Looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China”—the interviewer asked if the sanctions plan had backfired. Zelensky shot back, “No. I think the idea to put tariffs on the countries who continue make deals with Russia, I think this is right idea.”
As tensions rise in the ongoing Ukraine war, the US push for tougher Russia sanctions could shake up global oil trade and alliances. Stay tuned for more updates on how this plays out.
