Trump hits Russian oil companies with long-threatened sanctions: 'It was time'
President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he "felt it was time" to hit Russia with tougher sanctions, a major escalation amid his latest push to pressure Vladimir Putin into ending his war on Ukraine.
"Today is a very big day in terms of what we're doing. These are tremendous sanctions. These are very big," Trump said as he met with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office. "They're against their two big oil companies, and we hope that they won't be on for long. We hope that the war will be settled."
"I just felt it was time. We've waited a long time," Trump said when asked why he was taking action now after months of threats and delays.
The Treasury Department said the new economic penalties will target Russia’s two largest oil companies, Open Joint Stock Company Rosneft Oil Company and Lukoil OAO, as well as their subsidiaries.
Rosneft and Lukoil are estimated to account for nearly half of all Russian oil production.
“Now is the time to stop the killing and for an immediate ceasefire,"Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. "Given President Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war, Treasury is sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil companies that fund the Kremlin’s war machine. Treasury is prepared to take further action if necessary to support President Trump’s effort to end yet another war. We encourage our allies to join us in and adhere to these sanctions."
Bessent earlier Wednesday hinted the action was imminent, telling reporters there would be a "substantial pickup" in sanctions against Russia.
The sanctions come after Trump reversed course and said he called off a second summit with Russia's president that had been expected to take place in Hungary in the coming weeks. The Kremlin said there was never a date set for a summit.
Trump said on Wednesday he canceled the meeting because "it didn't feel right to me."
"It didn't feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get," Trump said, though he added they would do it sometime "in the future" and maintained he still believed Putin wanted peace.
NATO's Rutte, sitting alongside Trump, said the sanctions boost pressure on Putin to come to the table and negotiate.
"It's all about changing the calculus, making sure that Putin understands that the president's vision this weekend of having a ceasefire -- stop where they are, as you literally said -- that this has to be step one now, and for him to really accept that vision and to come to the table and then you have to put pressure. And this is exactly what you did today," Rutte said.
The announcement Wednesday means that Russia's four largest oil companies have now been hit by U.S. sanctions.
In January, the Biden administration imposed sanctions on Russian oil companies Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas -- but held off imposing penalties on Rosneft and Lukoil over concerns that it could drive up global energy prices.
According to experts, Rosneft and Lukoil, the companies targeted Wednesday, are two of the world’s biggest energy companies, and together export 3.1 million barrels of oil per day. Rosneft alone is responsible for 6% of global and nearly half of all Russian oil production.
A number of Russian-based subsidiaries majority-owned by Rosneft and Lukoil have also been sanctioned under the move.
The sanctions announced Wednesday mark the first against Russia since President Trump entered office in January.
