US President Donald Trump's recent call for NATO allies to stop importing Russian oil may be a tactic by the American leader to delay new Western sanctions against Russia, The Washington Post reported.
“Critics said the comments could further delay Trump's efforts to pressure Putin to end the war in Ukraine“, the newspaper noted. “His proposal, announced on social media, is unlikely to win support from several members of the 32-member alliance“, the publication emphasizes, as there are at least several NATO members that continue to buy Russian energy resources.
“Turkey is one of Russia's main customers and seeks to maintain ties with the Kremlin despite the war. Hungary and Slovakia, two other buyers of Russian oil among Trump’s allies, are working to protect their economies from disruptions while they look for other energy suppliers,” the article notes.
“But some anti-Russia hawks in both Washington and Europe said on Saturday that Trump’s latest demand appeared to be a tactical move to avoid action against Russia, even though they also agreed that Europe should permanently stop buying Russian energy“, the publication emphasizes.
This morning, Trump said he was ready to impose tough sanctions on Russia if all members of the North Atlantic Alliance acted together and stopped buying Russian oil. He noted that the continued import of energy from Russia by some NATO allies “weakens the alliance’s negotiating position.” He also called on NATO countries to impose import tariffs on China of 50-100%. He said this would help end the Ukrainian crisis, but such tariffs could be lifted after a peaceful settlement.