Trump gives reason for waiving sanctions against Russia
President Trump decided to stop sanctions against Russia that were expected to take effect on Sunday. This comes as the war with Ukraine enters a critical phase during the winter. CBS News' Ramy Inocencio reports.
On 18 October, US President Donald Trump defended his waiver of sanctions against Russia, stating that he did not want to "foolishly drive Russia away from the bargaining table." The waiver, issued through an executive order on 16 October, postponed additional economic penalties aimed at pressuring Moscow over its war against Ukraine while leaving existing US sanctions in place.
Trump claimed that the waiver would prevent oil prices from rising for Americans, citing a recent deal for Russia to increase diesel supplies to global markets. The waiver came as Republicans defended their slim majorities in the midterms, with analysts suggesting the penalties could have driven up oil prices. Trump accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of targeting Russian diesel refineries, saying the strikes were "seriously hurting the world diesel markets."
Zelenskyy had previously paused the refinery strikes following a US energy ceasefire, but resumed them afterward. Trump contended that Zelenskyy never wanted to end the war and could have secured a better deal two years ago. He also claimed that Russia was doing "very little, if anything, to help" Iran and wanted to maintain that relationship.
Trump had not made a final decision on the waiver, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio stating that a 60-day period would be used to analyze the implications of the sanctions and tariffs. Zelenskyy called the waiver a "pity," hoping that Trump would reconsider his decisions.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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