Washington: A new set of sanctions of Russia will apply “a lot” of pressure on Moscow, the White House said, suggesting US President Donald Trump could eventually decide to ramp up the measures. “If you read the sanctions and look at them, they’re pretty hefty,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday at a briefing, citing reports that China and India — the largest buyers of Russian oil — were scaling back their purchases. “It’s full court press for sure, and we expect that these sanctions are going to do harm,” she added. On Wednesday, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies as it called on Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. Asked whether additional sanctions could come down the line, Leavitt left the door open. “I’ll leave that to the President (Trump) to decide,” she said. Leavitt told CNN on Thursday that President Trump decided to announce new Russia sanctions and call off a planned meeting between himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin because he had “not seen enough interest” in “moving the ball forward towards peace” from the Russian side.(IANS)
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