Bessent to Russia: No Relief Until War Ends
Bessent to Russia: No Relief Until War Ends
The News
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov on Monday that no sanctions relief and no agreements with Moscow are possible until the war in Ukraine ends, a source familiar with the meeting told Reuters.
The two men met on the sidelines of a Group of 20 finance leaders' gathering in Asheville, North Carolina.
When Siluanov raised other areas of mutual interest, Bessent made clear that "nothing is possible until the war is over," Reuters reported.
Timeline
Siluanov appears in person at the G20 finance ministers' meeting in Asheville, his first in-person appearance at the summit since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. European officials object to standing with him for the traditional group photo, which is ultimately taken without the Russian minister.
Bessent meets Siluanov on the summit's sidelines. Axios reported the meeting centered on President Donald Trump's peace plan for Ukraine and on economic growth; Russia's finance ministry described the talks as covering financial cooperation between the two countries within the G20 framework.
Britain doubles penalties for sanctions breaches, raising fines from 50% of the value of a breach to 100%, the UK treasury said. UK finance minister John Healey announced the move, and the National Crime Agency issued a nationwide alert targeting the Kremlin-backed A7 network, which the British government says was used to route funds and evade restrictions.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he held a "detailed and constructive" call with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, with both sides working to finalize dates for a visit to Ukraine.
Explosions are reported in Kyiv. Four people were injured, including two children, local authorities said, with air raid alerts covering most of Ukraine.
Reactions
European governments, which are working on further sanctions to squeeze Moscow's economy and finances, were dismayed by Russia's return to the table and intend to keep the country isolated while the war continues, CNBC reported.
Washington's willingness to sit down with Siluanov cut the other way, underscoring an openness to reopening high-level diplomatic channels with Moscow even as allies push isolation.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meeting Vladimir Putin in Kyrgyzstan, said the war must end. "Every day that the war continues, humanity is, in effect, set back a step, whilst every step towards peace gives all of humanity real hope for peace," Modi said. "We need to move from endless war to an end to the war, to a cessation of hostilities."
Zelenskyy, describing the battlefield to the US envoys, said Russia's gains have been "sparse and at the cost of huge losses," and added: "September could bring about a lot of changes."
What's Next
Ukraine's top sanctions official, Vladyslav Vlasiuk, travels to Washington this week to press House members to approve sweeping Russia sanctions legislation that would let the president sanction Russian officials and impose tariffs on China, India and other buyers of Russian oil and gas. The House has not scheduled a vote, and some lawmakers and industries are wary the powers could be abused.
European capitals are still drafting an expanded sanctions package. Witkoff and Kushner are working out dates for a trip to Ukraine, and the fighting has not paused: Russia fired 800 jet-powered drones into Ukraine over four days, according to the Guardian, and NATO scrambled fighter planes early Tuesday after Latvia's military warned of a possible air threat near Ludza, close to the Russian border.
More
Two figures frame the standoff. India and China remain among the biggest buyers of Russian oil, revenue that has helped fund the war — the same trade the stalled US sanctions bill would target. And the enforcement fight is widening: the EU's naval mission boarded the suspected "shadow fleet" tanker MV Sun in the Mediterranean on Aug. 30 for flag verification, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, while Polish prosecutors are investigating a deliberately set fire at the WB Electronics drone factory in Skarzysko-Kamienna as terrorism arranged by a foreign intelligence service.
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