NewzUS President Donald Trump has waived a further slate of sanctions related to Russian fossil fuel sales, days before they were to take effect under a bill he signed into law last month. The waiver announced in an executive order Friday comes as Trump increasingly feuds with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and cracks appear in Washington’s support for Kyiv in its four-year-old war against its invading neighbor, deepening alarm among European allies. The White House has heaped pressure on Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian oil facilities, as it seeks to ease oil prices ahead of midterm elections at home.
Ukraine briefly acceded to the request, but has since resumed attacks – and Russia has continued to pound Ukraine’s energy infrastructure throughout the week. Zelensky condemned the move, which came as Russia carried out what he said was one of their biggest attacks on Ukrainian energy. “At a time when the Russians have carried out such a massive attack on our energy sector, a decision was unfortunately made in America to completely disregard the Lindsey Graham Act, which was supposed to impose truly effective pressure on Russia to bring this war to an end,” he said.
“This Act could have helped enormously – and still can! But it needs to actually work, and every voice in support of it matters.” Despite the current tensions between Zelensky and Trump, the Ukrainian president said negotiators from the two countries talked on Friday and could meet next week. In a WhatsApp media chat with reporters on Saturday, he said details of a potential meeting were being worked out.
The latest reprieve by Trump for Moscow’s depleted coffers quickly triggered criticism from both sides of the aisle in Washington on Friday evening. The forestalled legislation would have imposed tariffs of up to 100% on – among other things – goods brought into the US from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil or gas, the sale of which is crucial to funding the Kremlin’s war machine. “I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver at this time is in the national interests of the United States,” Trump said in the order released by the White House on Friday.
The order did not specify why the decision served the national interest, and said the waiver will remain in effect until the Trump administration determines that “further action is appropr… KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged supporters Saturday to speak out in defense of new U.S. sanctions against Russia, hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order pausing a sweeping package of restrictions targeting the Russian economy.
The White House decision has further raised fears that Ukraine could be left exposed to Moscow’s escalating assaults with winter approaching. Russian attacks overnight killed at least four people, including an ambulance driver, and injured dozens, officials said. Ukrainian drones killed a woman in a Russian border region and disrupted flights at Moscow’s airports, according to Russian authorities.
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