Brussels: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has issued a stern warning to Brazil, China, and India, cautioning that they could face severe economic penalties if they continue doing business with Russia. Speaking to reporters after meeting with US senators on July 16, Rutte urged leaders in Beijing, Delhi, and Brasilia to press Russian President Vladimir Putin to take the peace negotiations seriously.
"If you are the President of China, the Prime Minister of India, or the President of Brazil, and you continue to trade with Russia and buy their oil and gas, then you know: if the man in Moscow doesn't take the peace negotiations seriously, I will impose 100 per cent secondary sanctions," Rutte said.
"My encouragement to these three countries, particularly, is: if you live now in Beijing, or in Delhi, or you are the president of Brazil, you might want to take a look into this, because this might hit you very hard," he added.
Rutte also called on the leaders of the three nations to directly urge Putin to commit to peace talks. "So please make the phone call to Vladimir Putin and tell him that he has to get serious about peace talks, because otherwise this will slam back on Brazil, on India, and on China in a massive way," he said.
The NATO leader's remarks came just a day after US President Donald Trump announced new military support for Ukraine and threatened sweeping tariffs on Russia and its trading partners.
India and China are reportedly among the largest buyers of Russian crude oil, and if Trump imposes the sanctions, these countries -- especially India -- could face serious consequences. The move also could disrupt energy supplies and raise costs at a time when global prices are already unstable.
We'll cope with new sanctions: RussiaMoscow: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded to the US warning of fresh sanctions over the Ukraine war, saying Moscow wants to understand what is driving America's actions and asserting confidence that Russia will withstand any new punitive measures. "We want to understand what the US President is moved by," Lavrov said, addressing Trump's 50-day ceasefire ultimatum to Russia. "I have no doubt we will cope with new sanctions," he added, brushing aside the threat of what Trump described as "secondary tariffs" if President Vladimir Putin does not agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine within the specified time frame. The comments came after President Donald Trump warned of 'biting' 100 per cent tariffs on Russian exports and signalled plans to slap secondary sanctions on countries that continue to buy Russian oil if no peace deal with Ukraine is reached within 50 days. |
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Zelenskyy hails US weapons dealKyiv: After US President Donald Trump said that billions of dollars worth of military equipment would be sent to Ukraine, politicians in Kyiv welcomed the move as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he spoke to the US president and thanked him for the support. Zelenskyy said he and President Trump have agreed to speak more frequently and continue to coordinate the steps. “It was a very good conversation. I thanked him for his readiness to support Ukraine and to continue working together to stop the killings and establish a lasting and just peace,” Zelenskyy wrote on the Telegram app. Trump promised that additional patriot systems would arrive in a few days and it is being sponsored by Germany and other NATO partners. Kyiv reportedly has only six functioning patriot batteries. It would be a significant step for Ukraine to defend itself against Russia’s barrage of missile and drone attacks. |
