New US sanctions threaten to slash Russia's oil income by $5 bln monthly - Zelenskyy
Photo: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this in an interview with Axios that the Russian Federation may lose up to 50% of its oil revenues following sanctions imposed by the United States.
In his opinion, the conversation between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "was not positive." According to Zelenskyy, this is already the third or fourth instance when Russian President Vladimir Putin and his entourage publicly reject statements made by Donald Trump.
"They did the same after Alaska. This is the third or fourth time when Putin and his people reject what Trump says," Zelenskyy said.
He also noted that Trump "got a very bad reaction" in Russia due to the new US sanctions, particularly because of sharp comments from Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev and the rise of "anti-American and anti-Trump rhetoric" in Russian state media.
Zelenskyy said that Ukraine estimates the new US sanctions against Russian oil companies could reduce oil exports by 50%, amounting to up to $5 billion per month in lost revenues. He also expressed hope that these measures would be followed by new secondary sanctions and "parallel steps by the US Congress."
Sanctions against Russia
On the night of October 23, the United States announced the introduction of new sanctions against Russia’s two largest oil companies — Rosneft and Lukoil. Dozens of their subsidiaries were also affected.
The US Treasury, commenting on the decision, called on Moscow to immediately agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.
In addition, Reuters reported that Washington has already prepared an additional sanctions package against Russia. These are planned to be implemented if Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to delay the end of the war. At the same time, the US expects coordinated actions from European partners before implementing new restrictions.
Meanwhile, Russia’s special representative Kirill Dmitriev stated that Trump’s sanctions will not affect Russia. According to him, they will instead lead to higher gas prices in the US. However, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that Dmitriev is a Russian propagandist who is lying about the consequences of the sanctions.
