Russia told the Trump administration on Tuesday that normalizing relations with the United States must be accompanied by the lifting of sanctions against Moscow.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to reports on Monday that Trump had ordered the development of options for easing sanctions on Russia amid ongoing direct peace talks to end the war in Ukraine.
“It’s probably too early to say anything. We haven’t heard any official statements, but in any case, our attitude to the sanctions is well known, we consider them illegal,” Peskov said.
“And of course, if we are talking about normalizing bilateral relations, they must be freed from this negative burden of so-called sanctions.”
Both the previous Biden administration and the European Union have imposed several waves of sanctions on Russia, primarily targeting the banking, energy, and defense sectors, and many measures have also been taken against Putin and his top officials and Russian oligarchs.
Given the dramatic and rapid steps coming from the White House, this moment may be Russia’s best chance to achieve its desire to ease sanctions, although it is less likely from the European side.
The White House announced on Monday a suspension of all U.S. defense aid to Ukraine, amid continued pressure to ensure Zelensky signs off on Trump’s controversial mineral deal.
Putin’s office has naturally responded positively to this unexpected development, with Russian media reporting the following new words, according to TASS:
If the US has really decided to stop providing military aid to Ukraine, it could force the Kiev regime to participate in the peace process, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
…The order came into effect early Tuesday morning. A Pentagon official told TASS that the US military has suspended the delivery of military aid to Ukraine. He said the move applies to all US military equipment that has not yet arrived in Ukraine, including weapons transported by aircraft and ships or awaiting shipment from Polish transit zones.
“Undoubtedly, we still have to clarify the details, but if this is true, then this is a decision that can really push the Kiev regime towards the peace process,” the Russian presidential spokesman noted.
The decision came on the same day that Reuters reported that “the White House has asked the State and Treasury departments to prepare a list of sanctions that could be eased for U.S. officials to discuss with Russian representatives in the coming days as part of the administration’s broad talks on improving diplomatic and economic relations with Moscow,” the sources said.
“These are completely different things” – Putin never offered American companies rare earth mining in Russia, he spoke about the potential for cooperation, Kremlin spokesman Peskov
Sanctions must go pic.twitter.com/ehAQVfQXmc
— RT (@RT_com) March 4, 2025
These developments are likely to accelerate US-Russian talks and the process of improving ties, which could lead to real economic cooperation. Washington has also probably realized by now that its sanctions against Russia have generally not worked or have backfired. In many ways, they have only strengthened Moscow’s relations and trade with the leading BRICS countries, such as China and India, as well as with Iran.
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Meanwhile, the archived clip below has been getting a lot of comments this week, given the state of affairs…
