August 18, 2025

Warren: President Trump Must Act Now to Increase Pressure on Putin and Help End War

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, released the following statement:

“President Trump rolled out the red carpet for Vladimir Putin, and now he’s rolling back his promise to impose consequences for Russia’s war. The Kremlin has tasked key economic officials to entice the Administration with business deals precisely because they want sanctions relief. Trump has failed to recognize that this means America has cards to play in pushing for real peace negotiations. The Administration’s claim that it needed to pause even basic sanctions or export controls actions for more than six months to preserve talks does not withstand scrutiny.

“Over the last seven months in office, President Trump’s inaction has weakened Ukraine’s leverage, enriched bad actors, and emboldened Putin to keep his war going. If President Trump is serious about securing a just peace for Ukraine, he needs to act now to increase pressure on Putin’s war machine.”

Earlier this month, Senators Warren and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, released a new investigative report detailing how the Trump Administration is failing to use core economic tools to pressure Putin and degrade Russia’s war machine. The report included four key findings:

  1. The Trump Administration immediately stopped taking basic sanctions and export control actions that had maintained and increased U.S. pressure. Since February 2022, the Biden Administration executed 141 rollouts of sanctions and export controls covering thousands of targets. In the more than 6 months President Trump has been in office, his Administration has done 0 rollouts.
  2. The Administration has further undermined Ukraine’s leverage by repeatedly signaling a lack of commitment to maintaining effective sanctions.
  3. The Trump Administration has failed to capitalize on an opening to drive down Russian oil revenue.
  4. Across agencies, Trump Administration decisions have caused strain in staffing to support Russia sanctions and export controls.

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