Kremlin hails Trump’s decision to pause sanctions

 

Felix Wilow

 

Published 09:40 | Updated 11:53

Donald Trump is scrapping several planned sanctions against Russia.

The move is being hailed by the Russian leadership.

“The enemies of global security, cooperation, and prosperity will not be happy,” writes Kirill Dmitriev, an envoy for Vladimir Putin, on X.

Overnight, Donald Trump decided to postpone a planned package of sanctions against Russia.

The decision has been welcomed by Vladimir Putin’s envoy, Kirill Dmitriev.

“The Trump administration’s decision to pause the ‘Graham Act’ is an important and truly historic moment,” he writes on X.

Approved last month

He further notes that “enemies of global security, cooperation, and prosperity” will not be pleased.

The legislative package was spearheaded by Senator Lindsey Graham—who passed away earlier this year—and includes, among other measures, tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods entering the U.S. from the five largest importers of Russian oil or gas, according to Reuters.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy writes on Telegram that Russia has intensified its offensive against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure ahead of the winter. Between 7:00 PM last night and 7:00 AM this morning, more than 320 Shahed drones were launched at such targets in Ukraine, according to the president.

“While the Russians were carrying out such a massive attack on our energy system, a decision was unfortunately made in the U.S. to completely disregard Lindsey Graham’s legislative proposal—a measure that would have exerted truly significant pressure on Russia to bring an end to the war,” Zelenskyy writes. Donald Trump justifies his decision by citing the national interests of the United States.

“I hereby waive the application of such sanctions, restrictions, and obligations as set forth in the Graham Act. I have submitted a certification to Congress stating that the issuance of such a waiver at this time is in the national interest of the United States.”

Zelenskyy thanked Trump

The sanctions package was approved by Trump a month ago. At that time, he was thanked by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who described the sanctions package as crucial. He also attended Graham’s funeral in July.

“When Lindsey Graham was here in Ukraine, he would always talk about how important it was not to ease the pressure on Russia, to strengthen sanctions, and to seek a path to peace,” Zelenskyy wrote at the time.

Over the past week, Trump has attempted to pressure Ukraine into agreeing to the Kremlin’s terms, and has reached an agreement with Russia regarding 300,000 tons of diesel.