Trump advisers working to ease sanctions against Russia - Bloomberg

“Trump’s advisers are sketching out how they might ease the sanctions imposed on Russia because of the war, including a cap imposed on prices for its oil sales, according to people familiar with the discussions,” Bloomberg writes.

Negotiations to end the war

Bloomberg adds that the United States, during a meeting with the Ukrainian delegation in Saudi Arabia, will discuss the timing and scope of an initial ceasefire with Russia, as well as points of tension that need to be resolved.

According to the sources, Russia is also ready to discuss a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine provided that progress is made on a final peaceful settlement.

Commitment to a partial Russian-Ukrainian truce would be seen as a first step toward negotiating a more sustainable settlement.

According to the unnamed officials, discussions on US security guarantees, which could be crucial, are currently on hold. Another point of disagreement will be the size and scope of the Ukrainian army.

Meanwhile, European leaders, led by the United Kingdom and France, are preparing their proposals for providing security guarantees to Kyiv. At the same time, officials in London and Paris have made it clear that these guarantees will require support from the United States, but Trump has not yet committed to them.

“European officials believe that Putin’s ultimate goal of seizing Ukraine hasn’t changed and he can’t be trusted. A key European objective at this stage is to test Trump’s belief that Putin is serious about negotiating a realistic peace settlement,” Bloomberg adds.

Sanctions against Russia

After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Western countries, including the US, EU, UK and their allies, imposed extensive sanctions. They include financial restrictions, freezing of assets of Russian oligarchs and officials, disconnection of certain banks from SWIFT, and export restrictions on high-tech goods. In addition, an embargo on Russian oil and gas was imposed in some countries, which significantly affected the Russian economy.

Meanwhile, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham plans to submit a bill on new sanctions against Russia that will affect the banking and energy sectors.