Lesya Leshchenko17:52, 13.09.25

US President Donald Trump has declared his readiness to impose serious sanctions against Russia, but has listed several conditions. Thus, NATO countries should also impose sanctions, stop buying oil from Russia, and, in addition, impose duties against China in the amount of 50-100%, which “will be completely canceled after the end of Russia’s war against Ukraine.” According to Trump, the purchase of Russian oil by the Alliance countries weakens the negotiating position and influence on Moscow, and the measures he proposed will significantly help end the “deadly but absurd war.” In an interview with UNIAN, Oleksandr Merezhko, a Ukrainian MP and chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation, spoke about what Trump’s change of position means and whether Europe can fulfill his conditions.

In your opinion, aren’t Trump’s conditions from the very beginning impossible to fulfill, and voiced only in order not to impose sanctions and always have an argument for this decision?

In my opinion, this change in Trump’s previous position looks somewhat strange and requires explanations or clarifications from him. Initially, he promised many times to impose serious sanctions against Russia and its allies without any prior demands. He set deadlines many times. And now he is changing his position and demanding that before the US applies the long-promised serious sanctions, NATO countries first stop buying Russian oil. 

I don’t understand what prevents the US from setting an example for NATO countries and fulfilling its promise, that is, imposing sanctions against Russia without any new conditions. I don’t see the logic here and I don’t understand why Trump changed his position. For example, what does he specifically mean? That first countries like Hungary should completely stop buying Russian energy and only then will the US apply sanctions against Russia? It may seem that Trump is simply looking for an excuse not to apply the sanctions against Russia that he promised earlier. Therefore, perhaps we should wait for him to explain what he means.

When a politician suddenly changes his previous position, it is a manifestation of inconsistency and damages the credibility of that politician.

Could EU countries theoretically impose trade tariffs on Chinese goods of 50 to 100 percent, as Trump demands? After all, China is the EU’s main trading partner today.

Europe is a diverse country, each with its own foreign policy. It is clear that the best option would be for each European country to abandon Russian oil and impose trade tariffs on Chinese goods, but getting each European country to do so immediately may not be easy. What if one of the countries does not impose tariffs? Will Trump wait until that happens and not impose sanctions until then? Something is illogical here.

That is, it looks like this: I will impose sanctions against Russia, but only after all European countries, without exception, stop buying Russian energy resources.

Plus, there’s a strange phrase that this is supposedly a “Biden-Zelensky war.” I don’t understand that. This is not a Biden or Zelensky war, this is Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine.

Almost no European country buys Russian oil, but many buy refined or rebranded oil, as well as petroleum products from India. Is Europe ready to give up these purchases as well?

Maybe it would be better this way: the US sets an example for European countries and introduces sanctions, and applies some “incentive” measures to those European countries that do not want to give up Russian oil.

And what do you think the Europeans will do to these demands from the US president? What will happen if Europe ignores Trump’s calls?

It’s hard to say, there may be an individual reaction from each country. Hungary may refuse. The question is what Trump will do about Hungary then.reference

Oleksandr MerezhkoChairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation

Oleksandr Merezhko is the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation.

During 2020-2022, he was Vice-President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. In January 2023, he participated in the elections for the President of PACE.

He is the author of numerous articles on the topic of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, researching it from the perspective of international law. He justifies the right of the Crimean Tatar people to self-determination as indigenous within Ukraine.

(C)UNIAN 2025