Ukraine urges Trump boldly: Time's up for Putin
In a significant move, Ukraine's government has called for the Trump administration to impose additional economic sanctions on Russia and take a firmer stance against the Kremlin's aggression. The Ukrainian government is pushing for increased pressure on Russia to halt its military actions and respect Ukraine's sovereignty, including rejecting any concessions that would legitimize Russia's control over occupied Ukrainian territories or rule out Ukraine's NATO membership.
This demand comes as the Trump administration shows growing frustration towards Russian President Putin, with talks of imposing new sanctions and a firm deadline for a ceasefire. The Ukrainian government aligns itself with these calls for stronger punitive measures, rather than concessions or diplomatic compromises that favour Russia.
The proposed sanctions, as outlined by Ukraine's head of the presidential administration, Andriy Yermak, would be enforced under the sanctions law of US senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal. Yermak specifically targets Russia's atomic energy agency "Rosatom" and space agency "Roscosmos" for sanctions due to their involvement in the war. He also suggests sanctioning Russia's state-owned "Gazprombank" and advocates for a full economic blockade.
Meanwhile, the tariff threats by Trump do not include specific sanctions on Rosatom, Roscosmos, or Gazprombank. However, if no peace efforts are made by Moscow by the deadline, the tariffs threatened by Trump will be enforced.
India, the second-largest buyer of Russian products, and China, the largest buyer, would be impacted with a 100 percent surcharge under these tariffs. India is heavily dependent on the United States as its most important export partner, with around 17.6 percent of exports going there in 2023. Despite the threats, both China and India are maintaining their economic relations with Russia, primarily importing oil and gas from Putin.
Trump's tariff would leave clear traces in China, with goods worth 484.7 billion US dollars (12.5 percent of total exports) from China going to the United States in 2024. Yet, the underlying accusation is that Trump seems to be hoping for a change of heart from Putin and his partners under the mentioned tariff threats.
The Ukrainian government's demands for sanctions focus on dismantling Putin's war machine and targeting Russia's military-industrial complex more specifically. This is in contrast to the tariff threats by Trump, which, while significant, do not directly target these sectors.
In a separate development, the grace period for Putin ends on August 8. It remains to be seen how these escalating tensions will unfold and whether the Trump administration will indeed impose the proposed sanctions or follow through with the tariff threats.
[1] Source: Ukrainian government statement on sanctions and sovereignty [2] Source: White House press briefing on Russia policy
- The Ukrainian government's call for additional economic sanctions on Russia is part of a broader push for policy-and-legislation that aims to dismantle Putin's war machine and specifically target Russia's military-industrial complex.
- In line with the Ukrainian government's stance, the Senate senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal have outlined a sanctions law that specifically targets Russia's atomic energy agency "Rosatom", space agency "Roscosmos", and state-owned "Gazprombank".
- The general-news and crime-and-justice sectors have been closely monitoring the ongoing tensions between Ukraine and Russia, with the Ukrainian government advocating for firm policy-and-legislation to halt Russia's military actions and respect Ukraine's sovereignty, while the Trump administration weighs in with talks of imposing new sanctions and tariffs.
