Senate Democrats blast Trump for failing to use sanctions to pressure Russia
Source: Reuters
February 24, 2026 4:37 PM EST Updated 6 hours ago
WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday blasted President Donald Trump for failing to ramp up sanctions to pressure Russia to end its four-year war in Ukraine, noting the European Union had designated nearly 900 targets in 2025 compared to just two for the U.S.
In an analysis released on the fourth anniversary of Russia's invasion, Democratic staff on the Republican-led panel identified hundreds of potential targets they said Trump could have imposed sanctions on during his first year in office. The war has killed hundreds of thousands and devastated swathes of Ukraine, Russia's neighbor to the west.
Democratic President Joe Biden, whose term ended in January 2025, rolled out at least 32 sanctions packages in each of the first three years of the war, they said, although critics say enforcement lagged. By comparison, Trump announced just one package of major sanctions - targeting Russian oil majors Lukoil and Rosneft - despite increased Russian attacks that have targeted Ukrainian civilians and decimated its power grid.
Trump has pressed Ukraine to agree to a ceasefire deal that could entail painful concessions of land captured by Russian forces, but talks between Russia and Ukraine have failed to produce a breakthrough thus far. The White House was not immediately available for comment.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/senate-democrats-blast-trump-failing-use-sanctions-pressure-russia-2026-02-24/
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