US President Donald Trump’s administration announced sweeping sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies in a renewed effort to pressure Moscow to reach a peace deal in Ukraine.
The sanctions, announced Wednesday, came a day after Trump said a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest would be postponed indefinitely.
“Every time I talk to Vladimir, I have good conversations and then they go nowhere,” Trump said.
Although the economic effect on Russia is expected to be limited, the move signals a major shift in Trump’s foreign policy stance. His administration had previously maintained that it would not impose sanctions until European nations stopped buying Russian oil.
According to the BBC, Trump had repeatedly threatened tougher measures against Moscow but had abstained in hopes of negotiating a peace deal in the three-and-a-half-year conflict.
His administration had sought to position the United States as a neutral mediator between Russia and Ukraine, departing from former President Joe Biden’s more assertive pro-Ukraine approach.
However, growing frustration over the Kremlin’s unwillingness to engage in meaningful talks appears to have motivated the latest action. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had also been urging Washington to increase pressure on Moscow for months.
On Wednesday, Trump criticized Putin for not showing commitment to peace efforts and said he hoped the sanctions would lead to a breakthrough. “I just felt like it was time. We waited a long time,” he said.
QHe described the sanctions package as “tremendous” and expressed hope that they could be lifted if Russia agreed to end the war.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the measures were necessary because of “Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war”, explaining that Rosneft and Lukoil play key roles in financing the Kremlin’s “war machine”.
Oil and gas are Russia’s biggest exports, with Rosneft and Lukoil together shipping around 3.1 million barrels per day. Rosneft alone accounts for almost half of Russia’s oil production – around 6% of global production, according to UK government estimates.
Trump also urged China, India and Turkey (Russia’s biggest oil customers) to stop buying its crude in an effort to tighten economic pressure.
Ukraine has recently stepped up its attacks on Russian oil refineries and energy infrastructure to weaken Moscow’s economy. Zelensky’s visit to the White House last week, where he sought long-range Tomahawk missiles, ended without success. Trump later explained that the weapons were “highly complex” and required a year of training to operate.
The decision to shelve Trump’s proposed meeting with Putin came after talks between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Trump said he did not want a “meeting in vain” amid continued aggression from Russia.
Fighting in Ukraine persisted overnight and Russian strikes on kyiv killed at least two people, according to officials. Earlier Wednesday, another attack killed seven civilians, including children.
Last week, the United Kingdom announced a similar package of sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “There is no place for Russian oil on global markets.” In response, Russia’s embassy in London warned that sanctions would disrupt global fuel supplies and “lead to further escalation.”
While Europe’s dependence on Russian energy has decreased significantly since the invasion began, Russian gas still accounts for 13% of EU imports. The bloc has pledged to eliminate those imports entirely. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed the latest US and EU measures as “a clear signal from both sides of the Atlantic that we will maintain collective pressure on the aggressor.”
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who was at the White House during the announcement, praised the move for “putting more pressure” on Putin. Rutte is expected to discuss a 12-point peace proposal developed by European allies and kyiv, which includes freezing current front lines, the return of deported children, prisoner exchanges and a post-war recovery fund for Ukraine.
The plan also outlines security guarantees and a path for Ukraine to join the European Union. Trump has said Moscow’s refusal to stop fighting along the current front line remains the biggest obstacle, a position Zelensky supports.
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