Trump threatens tariffs if Russia doesn't end Ukraine war
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President Trump delivers his inaugural address on Jan. 20. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
President Trump threatened on Wednesday to levy fresh tariffs on Russia if the Kremlin does not quickly agree to a deal to end its war in Ukraine.
Why it matters: Trump made ending Russia's invasion of Ukraine a key campaign pledge, but its not clear that his new threat will put significant pressure on Russia to change its negotiating posture.
Driving the news: Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday that if a deal to end the war is not reached "soon," he would 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 said he wasn't "looking to hurt Russia" but that the actions were necessary to end the war.
- "I'm going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR," he added.
Caveat: According to U.S. Census Bureau data, U.S. imports from Russia have fallen precipitously over the past decade.
The big picture: The U.S. has already imposed wide-ranging sanctions on Russian companies, imports, oligarchs and financial institutions during the Biden administration.
- The sanctions weakened Russia's economy but did little to slow its war machine, as Russia sought aid from allies like North Korea and China.
State of play: Trump vowed on the campaign trail to end the war within 24 hours of taking office. That didn't happen. Recent reports have suggested his administration now expects it to take several months to broker a deal.
- Trump was often critical of the Biden administration's support for Ukraine.
- His relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin has drawn scrutiny in the past.
- Nevertheless, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this month that Trump's "unpredictable" nature could help end the war.
Our thought bubble, from Axios' Ben Berkowitz: A threat to tariff Russian exports, and sanction its companies, has much less practical impact now than it would have in past years, given that Russian trade has dwindled dramatically since the war started.
Go deeper: Trump says he will meet with Putin to discuss end of Russia-Ukraine war
