US President Donald Trump has warned NATO allies that he is prepared to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia, but only if member states commit to halting purchases of Russian oil. Posting on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he was “ready to do major sanctions on Russia” once NATO nations “agreed, and started, to do the same thing.” He described continued oil imports from Moscow as “shocking,” insisting they weaken the alliance’s leverage.
Trump further urged NATO to impose tariffs of 50 to 100% on Chinese goods, arguing such measures would erode Beijing’s “strong control” over Russia. He told allies in what he called a letter: “I am ready to ‘go’ when you are. Just say when?” European dependence on Russian energy has sharply declined since the Ukraine invasion, but Trump’s words suggest the reduction remains insufficient.
The warning comes amid heightened tensions after more than a dozen Russian drones entered Polish airspace, which Warsaw called a deliberate act. Meanwhile, Denmark, France, and Germany announced troop deployments eastward to reinforce NATO’s eastern flank. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has also appealed for a complete stop to Russian energy imports, stressing that buying fuel funds Moscow’s war machine.
European nations have spent an estimated €210bn on Russian oil and gas since 2022, despite EU pledges to phase out purchases by 2028. Trump wants a faster timetable, with pressure mounting on countries like Turkey that maintain strong energy ties with Russia.
