US reportedly readies new sanctions as Russia stalls on Ukraine peace talks
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has prepared new sanctions against Russia, Reuters reported on Oct. 25, citing an unnamed U.S. official and another person familiar with the matter.
The sanctions could reportedly be imposed if Russian President Vladimir Putin shows no interest in meaningful negotiations and continues to delay ending Russia's war in Ukraine.
Trump announced his administration's first sanctions against Moscow since taking office on Oct. 22, targeting Russia's two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, and their subsidiaries.
The measures freeze all U.S.-based assets of those companies and pave the way for secondary sanctions against foreign institutions that handle transactions with those on the blacklist.
Some of the additional sanctions prepared by the U.S. are directed against Russia's banking sector and the infrastructure used to supply oil to the market, according to the Reuters sources.
Ukrainian officials also reportedly proposed new sanctions to Washington last week. Among the specific proposals were measures to cut off all Russian banks from the U.S. dollar system.
Two sources told Reuters that U.S. officials have informed Europe that they support the EU's plan to use Russian frozen assets to buy American weapons for Kyiv, as requested by Ukraine.
Washington has reportedly held preliminary discussions on the use of Russian assets located in the U.S.
The EU froze about $300 billion of Russia's central bank's foreign reserves in February 2022 as part of its third sanctions package, prohibiting all transactions related to their management.
Belgium, where the majority of frozen funds is parked, put the brakes on swift progress on the use of frozen Russian assets, warning that its demands related to legal worries would first need to be met.
The move signals a tougher U.S. stance after Putin's negotiating position led to the cancellation of a planned Trump-Putin summit in Budapest, with Trump saying he did not want "a wasted meeting."
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov earlier reiterated that Russia's stance on ending hostilities along the current front lines, which Washington and Ukraine support, "has not changed."
Following Trump's sanctions, India's biggest refineries are expected to reduce purchases from Rosneft and Lukoil to virtually zero, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed executives at Indian oil companies.
Chinese state-owned oil companies have also suspended purchases of seaborne Russian crude following the sanctions, amid fears of potential secondary sanctions, according to Reuters.
Experts earlier told the Kyiv Independent that the sanctions might squeeze Russia's oil sector.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
