WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump defended his decision to suspend broad new congressional sanctions against Russia, saying the waiver is necessary to keep Moscow at the negotiating table while accusing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of working to prolong the conflict.
Trump issued an executive order late Friday putting on hold a sweeping sanctions package passed by Congress and signed into law in September. The measures, named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, had been scheduled to take effect over the weekend. Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized the move as a 60-day pause intended to allow officials to analyze the potential economic fallout on domestic and global markets.
Dispute Over Peace Talks
Addressing the move on Truth Social, Trump pushed back against critics who warned the waiver undermines Kyiv and rewards the Kremlin amid more than four years of war.
“I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table,” Trump wrote. He went on to assert that Zelenskyy “doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did,” arguing that European aid has removed incentives for Kyiv to strike a compromise.
Trump also accused Ukraine of damaging worldwide energy stability by attacking Russian diesel facilities ahead of the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections. Earlier this month, the White House announced an arrangement to import more than 300,000 metric tons of Russian diesel to counter sharp price spikes caused by the war with Iran and shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Kyiv Warns of Historic Mistake
Zelenskyy pushed back against the administration’s posture during an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” warning that loosening penalties on Moscow directly benefits Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military operations.
“If the United States will take the side of Russia, of course we will not prevail,” Zelenskyy told NBC, calling any withdrawal of American backing “a historic mistake and big tragedy.”
Zelenskyy stressed that Washington had recently restored intelligence sharing after it had been temporarily halted, a disruption that left Ukraine without key early warnings about incoming ballistic missiles for three days. Despite the friction, Zelenskyy said his government remains in active discussions with U.S. presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to pursue diplomatic solutions.
Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev praised Trump’s suspension of sanctions as a significant step that prevents serious economic damage, while Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said fuel shipments to the U.S. could arrive within 15 to 20 days after commercial contracts are signed.
Battlefield Attacks Escalate
The diplomatic rift unfolded alongside sharp escalations on the battlefield. Ukraine launched a massive drone offensive targeting energy facilities in St. Petersburg, triggering fires at an export terminal and an oil depot, according to Russian authorities.
Meanwhile, Russian forces launched retaliatory strikes on Kyiv and regional energy infrastructure. Ukrainian officials reported that strikes damaged a capital subway station, killed at least one person, and left tens of thousands of residents without electrical power as winter approaches.
It remains uncertain whether Trump’s diplomatic push will lead to formal peace negotiations. The Wall Street Journal reported that Putin has proposed a three-way summit next month with Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping that would entirely exclude Zelenskyy from the discussions.
