US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant strongly urged the Trump administration and European countries to increase economic pressure on Russia. He believes that tough sanctions can force President Putin to negotiate peace with Ukraine. On NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ show, he advocated strict action against countries that are still buying Russian oil.
Bessant said that if the US and the European Union jointly impose secondary tariffs on such countries, Russia’s economy could completely collapse, forcing Putin to negotiate.
Recently he called India and China “countries playing the wrong role”, alleging that both countries are indirectly supporting the war by buying Russian oil. The Trump government took action on this and imposed a 50% duty on Indian oil and 145% duty on Chinese goods, although the duty imposed on China has been postponed for 90 days.
India criticized this policy, saying that many European countries are also buying Russian energy but they are not being punished. On this, Bessant also admitted that the US and Europe will have to work together to influence Russia. He said, “Now it is a race – how long can the Ukrainian army survive versus how long can the Russian economy last.” This statement came at a time when former President Trump admitted that he has not yet been able to stop the Ukraine war, while he promised to end the war if he was re-elected.
Bessant’s comment came after the Trump-Putin meeting in Alaska, which ended without any concrete agreement. Although Trump described the talks as “fruitful” and said that agreement was reached on many issues, he also added that “agreement happens only when everything is decided.” Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the efforts of Trump and Putin and again reiterated India’s appeal for a peaceful solution to the war. He described the Alaska dialogue as “commendable”. As the Ukraine war is getting prolonged, global pressure is increasing to coordinate economic and diplomatic efforts. Now it remains to be seen whether Besant’s appeal changes the direction of this struggle or not.
