During a meeting with journalists Karoline Leavitt commented on the canceled summit in Budapest and Wednesday's decisions of the US presidential administration to impose sanctions on Russian oil giants, Rosneft and Lukoil. The spokeswoman recalled that Donald Trump had already announced the introduction of restrictions that were supposed to be a response to Russia's actions. As she noted, the president decided that “the time has come” to implement them.
Leavitt also expressed the opinion that Donald Trump had not hidden his disappointment with the attitude of Vladimir Putin and both sides of the conflict for a long time. The president believes that to reach a peace agreement, both sides must show interest. According to the spokeswoman, so far Russia has not taken sufficient action that could bring a solution to the conflict closer.
In response to journalists' questions, Leavitt noted that a meeting between Trump and Putin is not completely ruled out. However, she emphasized that the president and his administration want to be sure that such talks will bring concrete, positive results. “The idea is to ensure that the president's time is well spent,” she added.
The White House spokeswoman also commented on the effects of the announced sanctions. She expressed her belief that the restrictions imposed on Rosneft and Lukoil will be felt by Russia. Leavitt pointed out that the US administration's actions are already producing results, as some countries, including China and India, are limiting purchases of Russian oil at Trump's request. She also noted that the president is putting pressure on European allies to also stop importing raw materials from Russia. “We see full pressure and expect these sanctions to cause damage to Russia,” she concluded.
