According to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant, future US sanctions decisions against Russia will depend directly on the results of peace negotiations to end the war.
Points of attention
- Despite the extension of general license, new sanctions against Russia remain a possibility under the Trump administration.
- Understanding the evolving US approach to anti-Russian sanctions based on recent developments.
The US revealed its approach to anti-Russian sanctions
Bessent made the statement during a hearing before the Senate Banking Committee.
According to the American minister, he will consider options for increasing sanctions pressure on the Russian "shadow fleet."
"I will take that into account. We will see how the peace talks develop," he said.
According to Scott Bessant, it was the powerful sanctions imposed by Donald Trump's team against Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil that made it possible to persuade the Kremlin to engage in peace negotiations to end the war against Ukraine.
As mentioned earlier, at the end of October 2025, official Washington imposed large-scale sanctions against Russia for the first time during Trump's second term.
This happened because the Kremlin consistently ignored the White House's peacemaking efforts.
Despite this, the States recently extended the validity of the general license, which effectively guarantees the exclusion of Lukoil's gas station network abroad from the sanctions lists.
