BEDMINSTER: President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States is prepared to impose fresh energy sanctions on Russia, but only if all Nato nations cease purchasing Russian oil and implement similar measures.

“I am ready to do major sanctions on Russia when all Nato nations have agreed, and started, to do the same thing, and when all Nato nations stop buying oil from Russia,” Trump said in a social media post.

In recent weeks, the United States has stepped up pressure on Nato countries to tighten energy sanctions on Russia in a bid to help end its war with Ukraine a conflict Trump has struggled to bring to a close despite repeated threats of harsher penalties on Moscow and its partners.

Trump has also faced criticism at home for repeatedly setting two-week deadlines for Russia to de-escalate and allowing them to pass without concrete action. An August Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 54pc of Americans including one in five of Trump’s Republicans believe the president is too closely aligned with Russia.

The Group of Seven nations’ finance ministers in a Friday call discussed further sanctions on Russia and possible tariffs on countries they consider “enabling” its war in Ukraine.

Energy revenues remain the Kremlin’s single most important source of cash to finance the war effort, making oil and gas exports a central target of Western sanctions. But officials and analysts warn that aggressive curbs on Russian crude also carry risks of driving up global oil prices, a prospect that could strain Western economies and weaken public support for the measures.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2025