WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump has unveiled a new wave of “massive sanctions” on Russia’s oil sector, intensifying pressure on Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. The sanctions, announced Wednesday, strike directly at Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two largest energy producers — the lifeblood of the Kremlin’s war economy.
Trump said the measures are designed to bring Moscow to the table and halt what he called a “senseless and brutal war.” “Hopefully he’ll become reasonable — and hopefully Zelenskyy will be reasonable, too,” Trump told reporters. “It takes two to tango.”
The move follows months of appeals from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and mounting bipartisan pressure in Washington to hit Russia’s energy exports harder. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the sanctions as “a direct response to Moscow’s refusal to end its war,” pledging that Washington was ready to take “further action if necessary.”
The announcement came as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met with Trump in Washington, emphasizing that U.S.-supplied air defense systems have been crucial to Ukraine’s ability to intercept Russian missile barrages. “This is exactly the type of action we needed,” Rutte said.
The sanctions were unveiled hours after a new wave of Russian drone and missile strikes devastated Ukrainian cities, killing at least six people, including a mother and her two young daughters in a village near Kyiv. One drone strike hit a kindergarten in Kharkiv, injuring six and killing one adult, though all children escaped physical harm.
Zelenskyy, condemning the latest attacks, said Russia had targeted 10 regions across Ukraine, including Kyiv, Odesa, and Chernihiv. “Only through sanctions, long-range capabilities, and unified diplomacy can we force Moscow to the negotiating table,” he said.
Despite Trump’s push for dialogue, his peace initiative has yet to gain traction. Putin continues to reject Ukraine’s ceasefire proposals, and Trump admitted that plans for a direct meeting with the Russian leader are “on hold” to avoid a “waste of time.” Meanwhile, Putin ordered strategic nuclear drills, signaling defiance in the face of Western pressure.
The European Union is expected to debate further sanctions during a summit in Brussels on Thursday, while the Coalition of the Willing — a 35-nation group backing Ukraine — convenes in London on Friday.
Ukraine, meanwhile, continues its counterstrikes. Military officials said Ukrainian forces used British-made Storm Shadow missiles to hit a chemical plant in Russia’s Bryansk region, a key supplier of explosives and ammunition for the Russian military. Additional strikes reportedly hit arms factories in Mordovia and an oil refinery in Dagestan.
Trump, who will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the upcoming APEC Summit in South Korea, suggested that Beijing could play a pivotal role in ending the war. He proposed that NATO countries halt Russian oil purchases and impose steep tariffs on China for buying Russian petroleum. “I think Xi could have a big influence on Putin,” Trump said.
While Beijing has not confirmed the meeting, U.S. officials accuse China of indirectly supporting Russia’s war effort by supplying dual-use technologies such as microelectronics and machine tools.
As the war grinds into its fourth year, both sides face exhaustion and heavy losses. But with these latest sanctions, Washington is signaling that it intends to further choke Moscow’s war economy — and that Trump’s approach to ending the conflict will rely on economic pressure, strategic deterrence, and renewed diplomacy.