Senators Warren, Shaheen, and Coons Announce Investigation Into Trump Administration’s Five-Month Pause on Sanctions Against Russia’s War Machine
Washington, DC – Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and Chris Coons (D-Del.), issued the following statement in response to new reportson the Trump Administration’s five-month pause in sanctions in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine. Earlier this year, the Senators outlined a roadmap of sanctions and export control actions the President should already have been taking immediately to raise the costs on Putin and degrade Russia’s war economy.
“Americans should be asking why a president who says he wants to end a major war is instead letting the aggressor run rampant. On top of halting key assistance to Ukraine, President Trump has blocked regular updates to our sanctions and export controls for five months and counting—enabling a growing wave of evaders in China and around the world to continue supplying Russia’s war machine. The failure to use our existing tools weakens our pressure campaign, enriches bad actors, and emboldens Putin to keep fighting.
“The Administration claims that even basic counter-evasion sanctions will derail talks, yet it has repeatedly sanctioned and even bombed Iran while negotiations continue. Secretary Rubio says no sanctions have been lifted, but we know the truth: if we’re not actively enforcing and updating our controls, we’re falling behind.
“We call on the Administration to actively enforce the existing sanctions against Russia, including by restarting routine designations of entities around the world that are supporting Russia’s defense industry and contributing to Putin’s war effort. As Putin’s barbaric attacks on innocent Ukrainian civilians continue, this Administration should join our European partners in tightening sanctions to bring the Kremlin to the negotiating table. The only way to secure a just and lasting peace is to demonstrate resolve alongside our G7 partners and show Putin that the costs will only increase so long as he continues his brutal assault on innocent Ukrainians. Instead of taking clearly available steps to pressure the aggressors, President Trump is doing nothing, and we will be investigating this missed opportunity to push for an end to this war.”
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