US President Donald Trump has refused to join the European Union's campaign to put sanctions pressure on Russia, as he seeks to focus on economic cooperation with the Kremlin. This is reported in a material of The New York Times, UNN reports.
Details
It is noted that after Trump's talks with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on Monday "brought Mr. Putin exactly what he wanted: not only to end American pressure, but also to create a deep rift within NATO between the Americans and their traditional European allies, who say they will continue sanctions anyway."
Additional sanctions against Russia will hinder business opportunities, and the president (Trump - ed.) wants to maximize economic opportunities for Americans.
The authors recall that after talking with Putin, Trump said that "a huge opportunity opens up for Russia to create a huge amount of jobs and wealth," which indicates the US president's desire to establish relations with Moscow.
Putin seems well aware of Trump's commercial interests, so he focused most of their conversations on possible economic relations. As a result, Europe is moving towards the introduction of new sanctions, while the United States, on the contrary, is ready to move in the opposite direction, seeking to leave Ukraine and deepen cooperation with Russia.
The authors also quote an unnamed European official who "participated in closed-door discussions." According to him, Trump never wanted to join sanctions against Russia, even if it refused to agree to an unconditional ceasefire, and his threats "were mostly staged."
We will remind
Earlier, US President Donald Trump stated that he would not strengthen sanctions against Russia, as he believes there is a chance for progress in negotiations. According to him, he believes that Putin wants to end the war in Ukraine.
Later, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained that Trump believes that Russia is likely to withdraw from peace talks on Ukraine if Washington threatens new sanctions.