U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that Washington is ready to impose sweeping new sanctions on Russia—but only if NATO allies first commit to halting all purchases of Russian oil and enacting their own penalties.
“I am ready to do major sanctions on Russia when all NATO Nations have agreed and started to do the same thing, and when all NATO Nations STOP BUYING OIL FROM RUSSIA,” Trump declared in a post on Truth Social.
The declaration followed a Reuters report quoting U.S. Treasury spokesperson Scott Bessent, who called on G7 and European Union partners to adopt “meaningful tariffs” on goods from China and India in order to pressure them into curbing imports of discounted Russian crude.
In a direct move against New Delhi, Trump has slapped an extra 25% tariff on Indian imports, effectively doubling punitive duties on Indian goods to 50%.
The escalation has already strained U.S.–India trade negotiations, with Washington seeking to leverage economic pressure to cut India’s Russian energy ties.
By contrast, Trump has so far spared China from fresh tariffs, despite Beijing’s continued purchases of Russian oil. Analysts suggest the hesitation reflects the White House’s desire to preserve a fragile trade truce with Beijing while maintaining leverage on multiple fronts.
Trump’s ultimatum highlights the difficulties facing Washington as it seeks to unify allies and global partners behind efforts to choke off Moscow’s oil revenues.
With NATO, G7, and other powers divided over how far to push, the path toward coordinated sanctions remains uncertain.
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