US, EU Ramp Up Sanctions On Key Russian Oil Firms As Trump Cancels Putin Summit

Western countries have ratcheted up pressure on Moscow with sanctions announcements in Washington and Brussels targeting the oil and gas sectors that are key to financing Russia's nearly four-year long full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"These are very big -- against their two big oil companies," said US President Donald Trump at the White House, referring to sanctions, which he also called "tremendous," against Rosneft and LUKoil.

The European Union followed suit on October 23, agreeing to a "tightened transaction ban on two Russian oil majors," meaning Rosneft and Gazpromneft, a subsidiary of the state-controlled Russian gas giant Gazprom. It has also targeted Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and restricted the movements of Russian diplomats within the EU.

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Last week, Britain also sanctioned Rosneft and LUKoil.

The measures follow fast-moving US-led diplomatic moves to bring about a negotiated end to the war in Ukraine.

On October 16, Trump announced that he would soon be meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest, but on October 22 he abruptly announced that the summit was off and sanctions were on.

"Every time I speak with Vladimir, I have good conversations, and then they don't go anywhere," he said. "It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get,”

'Now Is The Time To Stop The Killing'

The move marks another shift for Trump, who has resisted putting more pressure on Russia in hopes that Putin would agree to end the fighting.

But his patience appeared to have run out after the plans for Budapest collapsed, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov saying on October 21 that Moscow rejected Trump's proposal to freeze the front lines.

Putin denounced US sanctions on October 23 as an "unfriendly" attempt to put pressure on Russia, adding that "no self-respecting country ever does anything under pressure."

He also claimed that such a move would rapidly increase prices, including in the United States, though it would not significantly affect Russia's economic well-being, causing only "some losses."

Putin also vowed to continue his dialogue with Trump, adding that he prioritizes it over "any disputes, and especially war."

SEE ALSO: Russia's Oil Giants Get Sanctioned By The US. Will It Hurt The Kremlin's War On Ukraine? (For Now, No)

In addition, the Russian president warned that his country's response to possible Ukrainian attacks using US-made long-range Tomahawk missiles -- deliveries of which have not not yet been approved by the White House -- would force a "very strong, if not overwhelming" response.

China also condemned the sanctions, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun saying they had "no basis in international law." Guo also urged Brussels to "stop making an issue out of China" after two Chinese oil refineries were added to the EU sanctions list.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that Putin had not “come to the table in an honest and forthright manner, as we'd hoped."

"Now is the time to stop the killing and for an immediate ceasefire,” Bessent said in a statement announcing the sanctions. “Given President Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war, Treasury is sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil companies that fund the Kremlin’s war machine. Treasury is prepared to take further action if necessary to support President Trump’s effort to end yet another war. We encourage our allies to join us in and adhere to these sanctions.”

Europe's New Measures

As well as targeting major oil companies, the EU has sanctioned 117 vessels in Russia's shadow fleet, used for sanctions evasion. This means a ban on port access, and restrictions of ship-to-ship oil transfers and reinsurance. The move is a significant enlargement of the blacklist, which now includes 558 ships.

The LNG import ban will be phased in. Short-term contracts will end within six months, long-term contracts as of January 1, 2027.

Restrictions on the movements of Russian diplomats mean that they will have to get permission from their host country and the country they wish to travel to, rather than just traveling freely as they have done up till now.

Why Putin Wants Control Of Ukraine's Donbas Region

Any diplomat ignoring this and simply driving across Schengen Area borders, for example, risks being declared persona non grata.

These are just some of the new measures announced.

"We just adopted our 19th sanctions package. It targets Russian banks, crypto exchanges, entities in India and China, among others. The EU is curbing Russian diplomats’ movements to counter the attempts of destabilization. It is increasingly harder for Putin to fund this war," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wrote on social media.

"We waited for this," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, adding that Washington had sent "a good signal to other countries in the world to join the sanctions."

Zelenskyy, who was in Brussels for the EU summit, welcomed the EU leaders' decision to explore options for funding Ukraine for two more years -- including the potential loan using frozen Russian assets.

"The European Union assured that financial assistance to Ukraine will be maintained," Zelenskyy said on X. "We have secured political support with regard to frozen Russian assets and their maximum use to defend against Russian aggression. The European Commission will work out all the necessary details."

European leaders pledged to cover Ukraine's financial needs in 2026 and 2027, European Council President Antonio Costa told a news conference after the summit. The leaders left it to the European Commission to work out options of how to provide that financing to Kyiv, Costa said.

"We have asked the commission to put forward options as soon as possible so that Ukraine has the resources it needs to continue defending itself and fight for a just and lasting peace in 2026 and 2027, if it's necessary," Costa said.

"Russia should take good note of this. Ukraine will have the financial resources it needs to defend itself against Russia's aggression and in the foreseeable future,” Costa said. “The technical, legal and financial aspects of Europe's support need to be worked on, and we will return to this issue in the December European Council."

Zelenskyy's visit to Washington last week was largely inconclusive, failing to achieve declared aims of securing additional US military firepower, such as Tomahawk missiles or more Patriot air defense systems.

Speaking at a press conference, on October 23, Zelenskyy said he did not consider his third White House visit this year to have been unsuccessful, citing a series of subsequent events, including Trump's decision to cancel his meeting with Putin and impose additional sanctions.

However, Zelenskyy rejected the idea of land swaps as "not acceptable," adding that he viewed the cease-fire as a first step toward ending the war.

The idea was reportedly discussed in his meeting with Trump last week, though it resulted in both leaders supporting a halt along the current front line, which divides Ukraine's eastern, southern, and northern territories along its nearly 2,000-kilometer border with Russia.

Firefighters Rescue Kindergarteners In Kharkiv Drone Strike

Zelenskyy's visit to the United States was followed by increased Russian air assaults -- including a strike on a kindergarten in Kharkiv -- in eastern Ukraine on October 22 that killed five adults and two children.

The attacks continued overnight on October 22-23, injuring seven people in Kyiv. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said another kindergarten was hit in the strikes, which also caused fires in three residential buildings, set cars on fire, and left debris near a synagogue.

In the Donetsk region, two journalists were killed by a Russian drone attack in the eastern city of Kramatorsk.

Ukrainian Journalists Killed In Russian Drone Attack

The reporters, whose deaths were confirmed by their employer, Ukraine's state-funded Freedom television channel, said the pair were at a gas station when the incoming drone hit.

"This tragedy is yet another example of Russia’s systematic war crimes against civilians," human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets wrote on social media.

Russia has consistently denied that its forces have targeted civilians during the war in Ukraine, despite mounting evidence to the contrary.