Trump decided not to impose the toughest sanctions because he wants talks with Russia, - WSJ
US President Donald Trump had three options for sanctions against Russia on his table. He chose the middle one.
As Censor.NET reports, The Wall Street Journal writes about this.
The publication notes that Trump had a tough option with sanctions against Russian industry and the country's top leadership, a medium option against Russia's energy sector, and a softer option with limited sanctions. He chose the second option with sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil.
According to American officials, the president's patience finally ran out after he came to the conclusion that Putin was stalling. Thus, a few hours after Trump canceled the planned summit with Putin in Budapest, Russia launched new strikes on Ukraine, hitting several buildings, including a kindergarten.
Reaction to Russia's aggression in Ukraine
Trump did not comment directly on the strikes, but, according to administration officials, he was outraged by such aggression, even at times when, in his opinion, he had made progress with Putin," the article says.
The publication emphasizes that all three packages of sanctions were prepared in advance and had been waiting for Trump's decision for several months.
A senior White House official said that Trump had made it clear that it was time to end the war, adding that he would continue to seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The American leader still has other tools to increase pressure on Putin, but he has not used them yet. This includes sending long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine, imposing new secondary sanctions on any companies that do business with Russian oil giants, or applying new restrictions on the "shadow fleet" of Russian illegal oil tankers in order to strengthen European Union sanctions.
According to Trump administration officials, the latest sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil could radically change the situation in the economy. At the same time, the US president has not yet made it clear whether he intends to impose additional US sanctions against Russia as part of increasing pressure on Putin to achieve a peace agreement.
Threats from Russian officials after the introduction of sanctions
Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev commented on the introduction of new US sanctions against Russia.
He also noted that the US is now "fully on the path of war with Russia" and called Trump a "talkative peacemaker", emphasizing that "this is his conflict now".
A Russian official close to the Kremlin told Bloomberg that losses after the introduction of sanctions are inevitable, although they are difficult to estimate at the moment.
According to him, Russia will try to use its network of oil traders and a "shadow fleet" of tankers to limit the financial impact of the sanctions.
