In response to former US President Donald Trump’s suggestion of imposing tariffs on China ranging from 50% to 100% to curb Russian oil purchases, China issued a strong rebuttal, stating that it neither initiates nor participates in wars. China is a significant purchaser of Russian oil.
Wang Yi, in a joint press conference with his Slovenian counterpart in Ljubljana, Slovenia, emphasized that war cannot resolve issues and that sanctions only exacerbate them. Trump, in a letter to NATO members and the global community, urged them to implement significant sanctions against Russia if all NATO nations agreed and ceased purchasing Russian oil. He expressed concern that NATO’s commitment had fallen short, especially regarding the purchase of Russian oil, which he believed weakened their negotiating position. Trump indicated his readiness to proceed with sanctions once there was unanimous agreement among all members.
The US had previously levied a 50% tariff on India for buying Russian oil, but no such sanctions have yet been imposed on China, despite its close strategic alliance with Moscow. The US has also been pressing G7 countries, which include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom (many of whom are also NATO members), to increase pressure on Russia by imposing tariffs on both India and China, major buyers of Russian oil.
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent conveyed to the G7 Finance Ministers that only a unified effort to cut off the funding of Putin’s war machine could apply sufficient economic pressure to end the senseless killing.