Trump Angered at Putin, Threatens Secondary Tariffs on Russian Oil if Ukraine War Continues

U.S. President Donald Trump expressed his anger at Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday, threatening to impose secondary tariffs of 25% to 50% on buyers of Russian oil if he believes Moscow is hindering his efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
Trump told NBC News, citing a telephone interview from early Sunday, that he was very upset after Putin criticized the credibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s leadership last week.
Since assuming office in January, Trump has adopted a more conciliatory stance towards Russia, causing concern among Western allies as he attempts to broker an end to Russia’s three-year war in Ukraine.
His sharp comments about Putin on Sunday reflect his increasing frustration with the lack of progress on a ceasefire.
“If Russia and I are unable to reach a deal to stop the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault… I am going to impose secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia,” Trump said.
“That would mean, if you buy oil from Russia, you can’t do business in the United States,” Trump said. “There will be a 25% tariff on all oil, a 25- to 50-point tariff on all oil.”
Trump later reiterated to reporters that he was disappointed with Putin but added, “I think we are making progress, step by step.”
Trump said he could implement the new trade measures within a month.
There was no immediate reaction from Moscow. Russia has consistently labeled Western sanctions and restrictions as “illegal” and designed for the West to gain economic advantage in its rivalry with Russia.
Trump, who spent the weekend at his estate in Palm Beach, Florida, told NBC News he planned to speak with Putin this week. The two leaders have had two publicly announced telephone calls in recent months but may have had more contacts, according to Kremlin video footage last week.
The White House did not immediately comment on when the call would take place or if Trump would also speak with Zelenskiy.
Trump has focused heavily on ending what he calls a “ridiculous” war, which began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but has made little progress.
Putin suggested on Friday that Ukraine could be placed under a form of temporary administration to facilitate new elections that could remove Zelenskiy.
Trump, who has also called for new elections in Ukraine and denounced Zelenskiy as a dictator, said Putin is aware of his anger. However, Trump added that he has “a very good relationship with him” and “the anger dissipates quickly… if he does the right thing.”
GROWING PRESSURE TO END WAR
Trump’s comments followed a day of meetings and golf with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Saturday, during Stubb’s surprise visit to Florida.
Stubb’s office stated on Sunday that he told Trump a deadline needs to be set for establishing a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire and suggested April 20, as Trump would have been in office for three months by then.
U.S. officials have been separately pushing Kyiv to accept a critical minerals agreement, a summary of which suggested the U.S. was demanding all of Ukraine’s natural resources income for years. Zelenskiy has stated that Kyiv’s lawyers need to review the draft before he can comment further on the U.S. offer.
Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he thought Zelenskiy was “trying to back out of the rare earth deal…. if he’s looking to renegotiate the deal, he’s got big problems.” Trump also told reporters that Ukraine would never be part of NATO.
Trump’s latest tariff threats would compound the economic strain already facing China, India, and other countries due to trade measures imposed during his first two months in office, including duties on steel, aluminum, and cars. Additional duties on imports from countries with the largest trade surpluses are scheduled to be announced on Wednesday.
William Reinsch, a former senior Commerce Department official now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, stated that the haphazard manner in which Trump is announcing and threatening tariffs raises numerous unanswered questions, including how U.S. officials could trace and prove which countries are buying Russian oil.
Trump laid the groundwork for Sunday’s news with a 25% secondary tariff imposed last week on U.S. imports from any country buying oil or gas from Venezuela.
His remarks to NBC suggest he could take similar action against U.S. imports from countries that buy oil from Russia, a move that could significantly impact China and India.
The U.S. has not imported any Russian crude oil since April 2022, according to U.S. government data. Prior to that, U.S. refiners purchased inconsistent volumes of Russian oil, with a high of 98.1 million barrels in 2010 and a low of 6.6 million in 2014, according to a review of EIA data since 2000.
India has surpassed China to become the largest buyer of seaborne Russian crude, which constituted about 35% of India’s total crude imports in 2024.
Trump also stated on Sunday that he could impose secondary sanctions on buyers of Iranian oil if Tehran does not reach an agreement to end its nuclear weapons program.