During his trip to the Middle East, US President Donald Trump spent a nice time. Saudi Arabia promised investments in the US worth billions of dollars, the Sheikh of Qatar organized a camel parade in his honor and equipped the US President's escort with red Tesla Cybertruck cars. In turn, in the United Arab Emirates, women performed dance.
However, this week one man broke his mood: Vladimir Putin. The Russian president did not appear on the negotiations he initiated with Ukraine in Istanbul. Journalists accompanying Trump have repeatedly asked him about what he reacted with more and more irritation. It seems that by rejecting all proposed room solutions, Putin put everything on one card. Now this may turn against him.
When it turned out that the talks in Turkey did not bring any specific results, Trump seemed to lose patience with the Russian leader. For the first time, he threatened Putin with the consequences, if he did not want to make a room, and announced a telephone conversation with him on Monday.
Putin annoyed Trump. The Kremlin puts everything on one card
When at the end of April Vladimir Putin once again sent his army to conduct large -scale raids to Ukrainian cities and civil infrastructure, Trump was clearly surprised. In a post published on his portal, Truth Social asked if Putin deceived him because he did not want peace at all. “You may be able to deal with him differently and impose sanctions on banks and secondary sanctions,” he added.
When it became clear that negotiations in Turkey did not bring any specific results, “perhaps” from the end of April turned into a specific threat. “I will do it if we do not reach an agreement,” said Trump in an interview with the American Fox News television station in Doha, referring to secondary sanctions. As a powerful tool they are in his opinion, he showed on the example of Iran. Whoever buys oil from Tehran cannot do business from the USA. “You can see how ships leave Iranian ports,” said Trump.
For the first time after taking office, Donald Trump feels the need to increase the pressure on Putin. For a long time, in the eyes of the US president, Wołodymyr Zelanski was not ready to make peace. However, in recent weeks, the Ukrainian leader has managed to prove to Trump that the fault is not on his side.
“Putin will block and delay the efforts to suspend the weapons until his economy is seriously affected and isolated on a financial island,” says democratic senator Richard Blimenthal. Together with his republican colleague Lindsey Graham, who in the meantime was not very favorable to Zelanski, currently he is pushing the law strengthening the packet of sanctions that Trump talks louder and louder.
Criminal duties in the amount of 500 percent
Imports from all countries buying Russian energy are to be covered by a penalty of 500 percent. Such a step would hit primarily Chinawhich only in January bought oil, gas and coal from Moscow worth about $ 5.9 billion. (PLN 22 billion 563 million), according to the Think Tank Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (Crea) analysis.
The loss of these income would cause serious damage to the Russian war economy. Unlike all previous years, this economy is significantly weakening. The Institute of World Economy in Kiel forecasts economic growth of only 1.5 percent. This year and 0.8 percent next. According to reports, the legislative initiative of Graham and Blimenthala already has 71 supporters in the American Senate.
This Damocles sword will hang over Vladimir Putin when on Monday at 16 (time in Poland) will raise the phone's phone. Donald Trump announced a telephone conversation between them at that time. He immediately formulated his expectations for Moscow: “I hope that the weapon will be suspended,” he wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.
After talking to Putin, Trump intends to talk to Zelanski, and then, together with the President of Ukraine, with “several NATO members”.
This may mean, among others, the heads of states and governments of the newly created “Kiev format”: France, Germany, Great Britain and Poland. It was the representatives of these countries who tried to persuade Donald Trump to impose sanctions. The EU has already decided to introduce a package of sanctions on Tuesday. As a result, about 200 ships of the Russian shadow fleet will be covered by sanctions.
Depending on the result of the Monday telephone conversation between Trump and Putin, the dynamics of the situation may be tightened again. The chairwoman of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced during the summit of the European Political Community in Tirana on Friday that he intends to introduce further sanctions. They are to be even more severe than the 17th package. Specifically, they should be directed against Nord Stream and the Russian banking sector. The commission remains “in strict contact” with Senator Graham.
