President Trump cancels his Putin assembly and reignites tensions with new sanctions : NPR

SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:

It has been fairly every week in President Trump’s quest to barter an finish to Russia’s conflict in Ukraine. First, Trump overtly toyed with the thought of offering long-range weapons to Ukraine. Then he introduced he would as a substitute maintain one other summit assembly with Russian chief Vladimir Putin. Quickly, nevertheless, the assembly was canceled with Trump asserting sanctions on Russia. NPR’s Moscow correspondent Charles Maynes is carefully following these zigs and zags, and he joins us from the Russian capital. Hello, Charles.

CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE: Hello, Sacha.

PFEIFFER: These sanctions should not new. There have been a number of them levied in opposition to Russia. In the course of the conflict in Ukraine, even earlier than then, why did these sanctions stand out?

MAYNES: Effectively, you already know, these sanctions goal two of Russia’s high oil corporations, Rosneft and Lukoil, which collectively make up practically half of Russian oil exports, and that is important not solely as a result of these corporations contribute a big quantity to Russia’s federal finances, which funds the conflict, but in addition as a result of it marks the primary time President Trump has adopted via on threats to make Russia pay a value for its conflict in Ukraine since returning to workplace. So it is a actual kick within the tooth for Russia, assuming Trump follows via. These sanctions do not kick in till the tip of subsequent month.

PFEIFFER: And why these sanctions now?

MAYNES: They appear to be born out of Trump’s frustration with Putin, who’s actually resisted Trump’s efforts to finish the conflict and, because of this, undermined these efforts to safe Trump’s legacy as a world peacemaker and maybe someday a Nobel Peace Prize recipient. And this frustration was on show once more with this new summit, this – which was introduced after which canceled in a matter of days.

You recognize, mainly, Trump felt he had one thing of a breakthrough in a cellphone dialog with Putin, some flexibility within the Russian place, which prompted the settlement to fulfill, solely to appreciate in follow-up talks to arrange the assembly that Russia was unwilling to make any concessions in any respect. This is how Trump put it at he White Home earlier this week.

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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Each time I converse with Vladimir, I’ve good conversations, after which they do not go anyplace. They only do not go anyplace.

MAYNES: So in Trump’s phrases, it was time for these sanctions, one thing he is clearly been reluctant to do till now.

PFEIFFER: Charles, out of your vantage level in Moscow, what is the response from Russians?

MAYNES: You recognize, I believe there is a little bit of whiplash, to be trustworthy. There was a number of snickering right here after Putin, with one cellphone name to Trump, not solely sweet-talked him out of giving these long-range weapons to Ukraine – that is at a second when Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was actually on his technique to the White Home to debate the thought – he additionally bought one other summit assembly, in Europe, no much less. The assembly was speculated to happen in Hungary till it wasn’t – you already know, no summit, then these sanctions.

Hawkish voices right here have stated, this proves Trump isn’t any good friend to Russia, even calling it an act of conflict. Putin was extra diplomatic. He stated Russia wouldn’t bend to stress, whilst he steered Trump’s choice was sorely misguided.

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PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Talking Russian).

MAYNES: So right here Putin says, that is, after all, an unfriendly act, however one furthermore that dangers undermining U.S.-Russian relations simply as they’re beginning to thaw beneath Trump. You recognize, however Putin additionally steered the assembly with Trump would possibly nonetheless be rescheduled, and actually, his U.S. envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, is within the U.S. right this moment assembly with White Home officers to see if he can get relations again on monitor. So, you already know, the message appears to be that Moscow could also be sad about these sanctions, nevertheless it clearly has determined that what Trump does right this moment is probably not what he does tomorrow.

PFEIFFER: Charles, you stated the sanctions will not go into impact till the tip of the month. Assuming Trump follows via and imposes them, any sense of how damaging they could be to Russia?

MAYNES: Effectively, Putin acknowledged they might be painful, however insisted they would not be devastating to the financial system, and analysts right here are inclined to agree. This is Marcel Salikhov of the Institute for Power and Finance in Moscow.

MARCEL SALIKHOV: All these sanctions packages – they’ve some impact, however this impact lasts a few months, after which corporations discover other ways to proceed commerce and to proceed transactions. So I believe that it is affordable to count on that it will likely be the identical this time.

MAYNES: You recognize, Sacha, Salikhov additionally says there’s a danger right here, although. If third-party actors, resembling China and India specifically, again off of Russian oil imports out of concern of U.S. secondary sanctions, you already know, that would do actual injury to the Russian financial system, which is already displaying indicators of pressure.

PFEIFFER: That is NPR’s Charles Maynes in Moscow. Charles, thanks.

MAYNES: Thanks.

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