Wall Street Journal editorial criticizes Trump’s suspension of Russian sanctions
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The Wall Street Journal condemned President Donald Trump’s executive order that halted tariffs and sanctions on Russian energy interests, citing concerns for U.S. and allied security.
The Wall Street Journal editorialized President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend tariffs and sanctions targeting Russian energy buyers and officials, a move that reverses provisions of a bipartisan law passed by the Senate 86-11. The legislation, backed by the late Senator Lindsey Graham, had authorized up to 500 percent tariffs on Russian imports and duties of up to 100 percent on major oil and gas purchasers such as China and India. Trump issued the order two days before the measures were set to take effect, citing “national interests.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X that the reversal “helps only the Russians” and fuels continued conflict. Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, a co-author of the Graham Act, said the president “stands on the side of a bloodthirsty thug & the enablers of Russia’s war machine.”
The editorial noted that Russia launched a large attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure shortly after Trump announced an “energy ceasefire,” and argued that Ukraine had honored the pause while Russia had not. Trump later suggested that Vladimir Putin might be willing to negotiate a peace deal, questioning Zelensky’s readiness to do the same.
The newspaper warned that Congress may need to address what it described as a “budding alliance with the Kremlin” after the upcoming November 3 election, urging a bipartisan review of the administration’s policy toward Russia, Ukraine, and European allies. The Daily Beast sought comment from the White House.