The United States is prepared to go "all in" on sanctions against Russia in order to pressure Moscow to the negotiating table, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on March 6.
Bessent's remarks come shortly after Reuters reported that the White House is considering a plan to ease sanctions against Russia as part of a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
Speaking at the Economic Club of New York, Bessent criticized former U.S. President Joe Biden for imposing "egregiously weak sanctions" on Russia and said the current administration was prepared to enact harsher restrictions to gain leverage in upcoming talks.
"A major factor that has enabled the Russian war machine's continued financing was the Biden administration's egregiously weak sanctions on Russian energy, stemming from worries about upward pressure on U.S. energy prices," Bessent said.
While Biden did impose sweeping restrictions on Russia's oil sector in the last month of his term, Bessent criticized the former president for taking such belated action. He said the increased sanctions would remain in effect and that U.S. President Donald Trump was willing to threaten more severe penalties.
"This administration has kept the enhanced sanctions in place and will not hesitate to go 'all in' should it provide leverage in peace negotiations," he said.
The Trump administration has faced outcry for its abrupt policy shift on Ukraine and its apparent friendliness towards the Kremlin. The reported plan to lift sanctions comes as the White House has canceled military aid to Ukraine and stopped intelligence sharing with Kyiv.
Bessent's remarks seemed tailored to deflect some of this criticism, portraying the Biden administration as soft on Russia and emphasizing Trump's willingness to take a hard line.
Sanctions on Moscow "will be used explicitly and aggressively for immediate maximum impact," Bessent said.
The treasury secretary also said the U.S. planned to intensify sanctions against Iran, which has supplied Russia with Shahed drones and short-range ballistic missiles, used in attacks on Ukrainian cities.
"We are going to shutdown Iran's oil sector and drone manufacturing capabilities," Bessent said.
Shortly after his inauguration, Trump threatened to impose tariffs and sanctions on Russia to force their hand in negotiations, saying "we can do it the easy way or the hard way." In the following weeks, Trump instead lashed out at Ukraine, claiming President Volodymyr Zelensky was "not ready for peace" and withholding critical U.S. support.
Zelensky announced on March 6 that U.S. and Ukrainian delegations have resumed cooperation and will hold talks next week.
Asami Terajima
