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Trump Pressures Putin to End Ukraine War with Tougher Sanctions, Tariffs

January 23, 2025

President Donald Trump exerted public pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine Wednesday, writing on Truth Social that if Putin cannot make a peace deal he will impose “high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions” on Russian imports to the U.S. Experts say Trump’s strategy could prove successful in light of Russia’s weakened economy due to past economic sanctions and its massive military spending.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Biden administration led a global campaign to enact financial sanctions against Putin and subsequently interfered with a potential peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, which never materialized. In the remaining three years of Biden’s term, his administration never made any serious efforts to broker a peace deal, and the war continues to grind on with no foreseeable end despite approximately $183 billion in taxpayer dollars that the U.S. has given Ukraine in military aid.

As a result, the war is “killing soldiers at a pace unseen in Europe since World War II,” The New York Times reported on Thursday. The latest casualty estimates, which vary widely depending on the source and are difficult to verify, are between 60-70,000 soldiers killed and 400,000 wounded on the Ukrainian side. On the Russian side, an estimated 115,000 soldiers have been killed and 500,000 wounded. In addition, approximately 12,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed and 27,000 injured.

During his presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly stated that he would end the war quickly if elected. On Wednesday, he made his first statement on the war since his inauguration on Monday in a social media post, posting in part, “I’m going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! … If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries.”

“Trump’s post is pretty significant because there’s just been this big question in the diplomatic community and in the markets about whether Trump would keep his foot on the gas on Russia sanctions,” Edward Fishman, a former State Department sanctions official, told The Wall Street Journal. “It’s clear that Russia’s economy is reeling, and I think Putin’s hope was that Trump would give him a reprieve.”

In comments to The Washington Stand, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Bob Maginnis, Family Research Council’s senior fellow for National Security, laid out two potential strategies that Trump could employ to end the war.

“Trump has two sanction-related strategies to select from in resolving the Ukraine war: good-faith measures to help Russian oil producers and increased sanctions to pressure Moscow to deal,” he explained. “First, the U.S. could help Moscow by raising the West’s price cap on Russian oil from $60 per barrel. It’s not clear, however, whether our European allies will agree to this move. Also, Trump could remove sanctions imposed by Biden on January 10, 2025, affecting 150 tankers operating in Russia’s shadow fleet and delivering 700,000 barrels per day. Trump could reverse that decision. Both moves could be a significant motivator for Putin to move toward peace talks. Second, the Trump administration could use a variety of economic sanctions to compel Putin to embrace a quick and peaceful outcome to the Ukraine war. However, that may not be sufficient.”

Maginnis went on to concur that Russia’s economy has been severely weakened by the war. “It is true that Putin’s Ukraine strategy is economically unsustainable. After all, the Russian leader created the illusion of normality to preserve domestic stability. However, there are growing, significant cracks in Putin’s plans. It won’t be too long before the economic pressures on Moscow become acute, and Putin will seek an end to the bleeding.”

He continued, “Understand that war-related spending is expected to be 40% of Putin’s 2025 budget or 8% of Russia’s GDP. Meanwhile, Putin’s full-on arms build-up and recruiting to fill the military’s ranks is not sustainable. After all, he must recruit up to 30,000 soldiers every month at a cost of up to $25 billion a year.”

Maginnis concluded by emphasizing that the U.S. should keep its options open and project strength in order to broker a short-term peace agreement so that a long-term plan can be settled upon.

“We also must send a clear message that America’s security is important, and we are prepared to exercise that element of deterrence,” he argued. “We don’t have to rush more troops and arms to Europe, but [we] must make it clear that that’s not out of the question. Meanwhile, Putin really wants Ukraine to be denied any hope of NATO membership, and he wants to maintain his influence over Crimea and the eastern provinces of Ukraine. Leave that question for future negotiations and perhaps create a temporary neutral zone overseen by non-aligned nations. Make the final solution about the territory a future problem once the peace is settled.”

Dan Hart is senior editor at The Washington Stand.



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