Zelensky criticises Trump’s waiver of Russia sanctions law

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticised US President Donald Trump’s decision to waive provisions of a new Russia sanctions law, saying it would encourage Vladimir Putin to continue attacks. In an October 17 post on X, Zelensky said suspending sanctions and easing pressure on Russia undermined measures that could have helped end the war. Trump had announced the waiver on October 16, saying it served US national interests. [ 3 , 20 , 21 ]

The law authorised tariffs of up to 100% on all imports from the five biggest buyers of Russian crude oil and natural gas. It also allowed tariffs of up to 500% on Russian imports. Trump signed the legislation on September 18; it required implementation within 30 days but granted presidential exemption authority, Nikkei reported. Mainichi said the period of the exemption had not been specified and that Trump had submitted a national-interest document to Congress. [ 3 , 9 ]

The decision followed Trump’s October 9 announcement of an agreement with Putin for Russian diesel supplies to the United States and international markets. Japanese outlets linked the moves to efforts to restrain high diesel prices before the November 3 US midterm elections. Mainichi reported criticism from Republican Representative Don Bacon, who said the president was prolonging the war, and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who argued the decision was unrelated to US national security. [ 5 , 9 ]

A report carried by Yahoo said Zelensky had also opposed the diesel arrangement at an October 16 news conference in Brussels. He warned that relief could expand to areas including natural gas and finance. NHK described his response to the waiver as strong opposition, while TBS reported his warning that the decision would not stop the war. [ 14 , 20 , 21 ]