Putin criticizes tariffs, says Russia is open for business

In a thinly veiled swipe at US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized tariffs as being harmful to the global economy.

Tariffs lead “to regional and national separatism, and nothing good comes out of such policies for those who pursue them,” Putin said on Friday at an economic forum in Vladivostok. He did not mention Trump by name.

Russia, therefore, remains open in its trade and economic policies to foreign partners, he said.

Putin explicitly welcomed the potential return of Western companies to Russia, though added that he was aware that many corporations were waiting for the end of the war in Ukraine and the lifting of sanctions to resume their business operations there.

Russia has criticized Western sanctions as protectionist measures.

Trump introduced varying tariffs on foreign imports, claiming that the United States has been taken advantage of by its trading partners. Goods from the European Union are now subject to a 15% tariff, while the rate is even higher for others, such as China.

Trump also cited political reasons for some of the tariffs. For instance, he imposed an additional 25% tariff on India for purchasing oil from Russia, bringing Indian import tariffs to 50%.

Russia, which has just over $3 billion in trade with the US, is not directly affected by Trump’s tariffs.