Putin slams U.S. sanctions as ’unfriendly,’ EU adds more

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BRUSSELS – The European Union imposed new economic sanctions on Russia on Thursday, adding to new punitive measures imposed the day before by US President Donald Trump against the Russian oil industry. Russian President Vladimir Putin called Washington's move an “unfriendly act” that could have unpleasant consequences in the form of a sharp rise in world oil prices.

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The U.S. and European sanctions are intended as part of a broader effort to cut off revenue and supplies that are fueling Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, forcing Putin to negotiate an end to the war.

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Speaking to reporters in Moscow, Putin acknowledged that “serious” US sanctions would have “certain consequences” for Russia but said they would not have a significant impact on its economy.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has long advocated for the international community to punish Russia more severely for the attack on his country, welcomed the new restrictions.

“We were waiting for this. God willing, it will work. And this is very important,” Zelensky said in Brussels, where EU countries attending the summit announced the latest round of sanctions against Russia.

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Despite US-led peace efforts in recent months, almost four years later the war shows no signs of ending and European leaders are increasingly concerned about the threat from Russia.

Ukrainian forces are struggling to stop the slow but steady advance of a larger Russian army along the roughly 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line that snakes across eastern and southern Ukraine. Almost daily, Russian long-range strikes strike Ukraine's power grid ahead of a harsh winter, while Ukrainian forces strike Russian oil refineries and manufacturing plants.

Targeted sanctions

Energy revenues are the backbone of the Russian economy, allowing Putin to pump money into the military without worsening inflation or causing a currency collapse.

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International oil prices jumped more than $2 a barrel on Thursday on news of new US sanctions against Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil.

Putin said he warned Trump that an attempt to limit Russian oil exports would destabilize global oil markets and backfire on the United States. “A sharp reduction in the volume of our oil and petroleum products sent to world markets will lead to higher prices,” he said, adding that the impact would be felt by consumers at US gas stations.

The sanctions won't take effect for nearly a month, until November 21, potentially giving Putin a chance to change his mind.

Chris Weafer, CEO of consultancy Macro-Advisory Ltd., said that “this is the window where they hope Russia will engage more seriously, and if that happens, then these sanctions can be suspended.”

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“You can be sure that every oil buyer in Asia today is trying to find something afloat to buy Russian oil before the sanctions come into effect,” Weafer told The Associated Press from London. “And so Russia will sell a lot of oil in the next 30 days, which will likely help the budget for several months.”

He also noted that, unlike European sanctions, US measures carry the threat of secondary sanctions against anyone who violates them. China and India are major importers of Russian oil.

Analysts say the effectiveness of economic sanctions in putting pressure on Putin is questionable. The Russian economy has so far proven to be resilient, although it is showing signs of strain.

The new EU measures are also aimed at Russian oil and gas. They ban imports of Russian liquefied natural gas into the bloc and add port bans on more than 100 new vessels in Russia's shadow fleet of hundreds of aging tankers that are evading sanctions. The latest sanctions bring the total number of such vessels subject to ban to 557.

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These measures also target cryptocurrency transactions, which Russia is increasingly using to evade sanctions; prohibit transactions in the block using Russian payment cards and systems; limit the provision of artificial intelligence and high-performance computing services to Russian organizations; and expand the export ban to include electronic components, chemicals and metals used in military production.

A new system will also be introduced to restrict the movement of Russian diplomats within the 27 EU countries.

Trump-Putin dynamics

The US sanctions came after Trump said his plan for a quick meeting with Putin in Budapest was on hold because he didn't want it to be a “waste of time.” It was the latest twist in Trump's hot-and-cold efforts to end the war as Putin refuses to budge on his demands.

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Putin deplored the US sanctions, calling them an “unfriendly act” that would damage relations with Washington, and said Moscow would not succumb to pressure.

“Such actions by the US administration certainly harm relations between Russia and the US,” he said. “This is an attempt to put pressure on Russia, but no self-respecting country and no self-respecting person makes any decisions under pressure.”

The Russian leader warned that any attempt by Ukraine to strike deep into Russia with longer-range weapons supplied by the West would mean escalation and would provoke a “very serious, if not overwhelming” reaction from Russia. “Let them think about it,” he said.

Commenting on Trump's decision to postpone the planned summit, Putin emphasized that it was proposed by the United States, and added that it should be well prepared for it.

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“It would be a mistake for me and the President of the United States to take this lightly and come out of the meeting without the expected result,” he said. “Dialogue is always better than confrontation.”

According to the head of the regional administration, Vadim Filashkin, a Russian drone killed two Ukrainian journalists in the Donetsk region on Thursday. Journalists Elena Gubanova and Evgeniy Karmazin worked for the Ukrainian TV channel “Svoboda”.

—Harriet Morris in Tallinn, Estonia, and Ilya Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.

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