Putin Defiant After Trump Sanctions Russian Oil Giants Over Ukraine War

Russian President Vladimir Putin struck a defiant tone on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies in a bid to pressure the Kremlin to end its war in Ukraine — a move that sent global oil prices soaring by 5%.

Trade sources told Reuters that major Chinese oil companies have temporarily halted purchases of Russian crude following the U.S. sanctions. In India — now the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil — refinery executives said they are preparing to sharply cut imports.

The sanctions target Rosneft and Lukoil, which together account for more than 5% of global oil production, marking a major reversal for Trump, who only last week said he planned to meet Putin in Budapest to discuss ending the conflict.

While the short-term financial impact on Moscow may be limited, the move signals Trump’s renewed determination to squeeze the Kremlin’s revenue and force it toward a peace deal in the now three-and-a-half-year-old war.

Putin dismissed the sanctions as “an unfriendly act,” insisting they would have little impact on Russia’s economy and instead disrupt global markets. “This is clearly an attempt to pressure Russia,” Putin said. “But no self-respecting nation or people makes decisions under pressure.”

When asked about Putin’s comments that the sanctions would have little effect, Trump told reporters later, “I’m glad he thinks that. That’s fine. Let’s talk again in six months.”

Putin also warned that deeper strikes inside Russia would draw a “very serious, if not extremely serious” response, after Ukraine renewed its appeal for long-range missiles from the U.S. and European allies.

Trump Pulls Back on Putin Meeting

Trump said on Wednesday he canceled his planned meeting with Putin because it “didn’t feel right,” complaining that previous “good conversations” with the Russian leader had “gone nowhere.”
“We canceled the meeting,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It didn’t feel like we’d get where we needed to be. But we’ll meet again in the future.”

Putin later suggested that Trump meant the summit had been postponed, noting the two last met in Alaska in August.

Moscow has signaled that its terms for ending the war — which Kyiv and several European governments consider tantamount to surrender — remain unchanged.

In Brussels on Thursday, EU leaders met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss funding for Kyiv. While leaders agreed to cover Ukraine’s essential financial needs for the next two years, they stopped short of formally endorsing the use of frozen Russian assets to fund a major loan package, after Belgium raised legal concerns.

Moscow warned that any seizure of its assets would trigger a “painful response.”

Zelensky welcomed the new sanctions as “much needed” but urged the U.S. and Europe to “increase pressure” to force Moscow toward a ceasefire.

After meeting Putin in August, Trump had abandoned his earlier demand for an immediate ceasefire in favor of pursuing a broader peace agreement — Moscow’s preferred route. Recently, however, Trump has shifted back toward advocating for an “immediate ceasefire,” a proposal supported by Kyiv but rejected by Russia, whose forces continue to make battlefield gains.

Moscow argues that any ceasefire would merely allow Ukraine time to rearm and regroup, calling it a “temporary pause” that would benefit Kyiv more than peace itself.

Separately, Lithuania said Thursday that two Russian military aircraft briefly violated its airspace, prompting a formal NATO protest and response, though Moscow denied the incursion.

EU Adopts 19th Sanctions Package Targeting Russian LNG

In another move to choke off Kremlin revenues, the European Union on Thursday formally adopted its 19th package of sanctions against Russia. The measures include a ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and new restrictions on Chinese refiners and Central Asian banks accused of helping Moscow skirt previous sanctions.

Since the invasion began in 2022, the EU has reduced its dependence on Russian energy by about 90%, though it still imported more than €11 billion worth of Russian energy in the first eight months of this year. LNG has now become the bloc’s single largest source of Russian energy imports.

Oil and gas revenues — down 21% year-over-year — still account for roughly one-quarter of Russia’s federal budget and remain a crucial funding source for its war effort, now entering its fourth year.

However, since most of Moscow’s energy income comes from output-based taxes rather than exports directly, the sanctions are not expected to have an immediate fiscal impact.

(€1 = $1.1663)