US Warns Russia of 100% Tariff
Kremlin Says "Putin May Comment Directly" on Trump's Remarks
Russia Sees Signal for Continued War, Not Peace
The Kremlin has described as "very serious" the warning by U.S. President Donald Trump that a 100% secondary tariff could be imposed if Russia does not agree to end the war in Ukraine.
According to TASS on July 15 (local time), Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated during a briefing that "the remarks by the U.S. President are very serious, and some of them are directly related to President Vladimir Putin of Russia."
He added, "Clearly, we need time to analyze what exactly the United States meant." Peskov also said that President Putin would comment directly on President Trump's remarks if he deems it necessary.
Peskov asserted, "One thing that can be said clearly at this point is that Ukraine perceives such decisions by the United States, NATO countries, and the European Union (EU) not as a signal for peace, but as a signal for the continuation of war." He went on to say that Russia is prepared for a third round of negotiations with Ukraine and is waiting for a proposal from the Ukrainian side regarding the timing of the talks.
On the same day, President Trump stated that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky should not target (attack) Moscow, the Russian capital. This is interpreted as a message that, while the United States will support Ukraine, it does not want the war to expand onto Russian territory. These remarks came a day after President Trump announced the resumption of U.S. arms supplies to Ukraine and unveiled plans for sanctions against Russia. The previous day, during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, President Trump warned that if an agreement to end the war in Ukraine is not reached within 50 days, the United States would impose a 100% secondary tariff on countries trading with Russia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, at a press conference during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) foreign ministers' meeting in China, commented on President Trump's tariff warning, saying, "I would like to understand the intention behind the '50 days' remark," and added, "In the past, there were also deadlines of '24 hours' and '100 days'." This appears to point out the inconsistency in President Trump's statements regarding a deadline for ending the war.
Regarding U.S. sanctions against Russia, Lavrov expressed a strong willingness to respond. He emphasized, "The number of sanctions announced against us is already unprecedented," and added, "We are responding to these sanctions, and I have no doubt that we will overcome them."
As for the threat of secondary tariffs targeting Russia's trading partners, such as China and India, Lavrov said, "At this point, it is difficult to predict their actions." However, he also stated, "They have made commitments, international commitments. I do not believe they will abandon the policies they have established through independent policies, bilateral channels, and multilateral formats."
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