The US President has enforced sanctions on the two biggest Russian petroleum firms following the conclusion that Vladimir Putin was not being “honest and forthright” in negotiations over Ukraine, the US treasury chief stated.
These restrictions against Rosneft and Lukoil followed just one 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 stop this needless conflict, [the] treasury is sanctioning the two biggest Russian petroleum firms that finance Russia’s military operations,” America’s Treasury chief, the Secretary, said on Wednesday.
He warned that the Treasury Department was ready “to implement additional measures should it be needed” to back the President’s initiatives to conclude the conflict.
Speaking to a business news network prior to the formal statement, the Treasury Secretary said the action was “among the biggest restrictions that we have imposed on Russia”.
Trump had delayed new sanctions for several months, saying he aimed to convince the Russian President to reach a peace agreement despite growing frustration with him. But Trump’s tolerance apparently ran out in the week after he talked to the Russian leader by telephone last Thursday.
The European Union also announced additional restrictions on the Russian government on Wednesday. These involve a ban on importing liquefied natural gas from Russia by 2027, the sanctioning of oil tankers used by Moscow and travel restrictions on Russia’s diplomatic personnel.
