File photo: US treasury secretary Scott Bessent
US treasury secretary Scott Bessent has accused European countries of refusing Washington's request to impose secondary tariffs on India and China for purchasing Russian oil, questioning why the United States should bear the burden of pressuring Moscow alone.Speaking to NBC News' Meet the Press on Sunday, Bessent said the Trump administration had approached European allies in the spring to seek coordinated action against countries buying Russian energy.“So we have asked—in the spring, I asked our European allies to join us in putting secondary tariffs on China, on India. They refused. So why should the US bear the burden?” Bessent said.He added that Washington could re-engage with its European partners, reiterating that President Donald Trump wanted to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
“President Trump has made it clear he wants the killing to stop. And the so-called Graham bill gives the president the flexibility, gives him 60 days to assess the situation,” Bessent said.
US defends 60-day pause on sanctions legislation
Bessent's remarks came after Trump temporarily waived certain provisions under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, giving his administration 60 days to assess the potential consequences of imposing sanctions and tariffs.
Defending the decision, Bessent insisted that the administration had not lifted sanctions on Russia.“No sanctions were lifted on Friday,” he told NBC's Meet the Press, referring to Trump's executive order granting the waiver.The legislation, which received strong bipartisan support in Congress, provides for tariffs of up to 100 per cent on goods imported into the United States from countries that are among the largest buyers of Russian-origin crude oil or natural gas, including India and China.Bessent said the pause would allow the administration to evaluate the situation before deciding on further measures. He also defended Trump's record on Russia, citing sanctions imposed on Russian energy companies Rosneft and Lukoil.“President Trump sanctioned the two largest Russian energy companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, which dealt a catastrophic blow to the Russian energy industry,” he said. “So no one has been tougher on Russian sanctions than President Trump.”US secretary of state Marco Rubio also defended the pause, saying the administration needed time to assess the consequences of imposing sanctions and tariffs on the global and American economies.“I think the president wants to take the 60-day period of time to sort of analyse what imposing both sanctions and tariffs will mean to the global economy, and even to the US economy,” Rubio told reporters on Saturday.Rubio said the administration was also considering pressures on global energy supplies arising from the Iran war, attacks by Houthi militants in Saudi Arabia and the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Bessent accuses Europe of financing Russia's war effort
Bessent also criticised European countries for continuing to purchase Russian oil and gas while supporting Ukraine.Citing shipments from Russia's Yamal facility, he said 140 cargoes had left during the first six months of the year, with 136 going to European countries, including Belgium, Spain, France and the Netherlands.Those shipments were worth more than $8 billion, he said.“The Europeans have given Russia and Vladimir Putin more money than they've given the Ukrainians.
They continue to gorge on Russian energy,” Bessent said.He added that the United States imported $4 billion worth of Russian products, including $1.8 billion in fertilisers, while European countries imported more than 10 times as much.Bessent also pointed to the UK's decision in May to waive its embargo on diesel and jet fuel made using Russian crude, questioning why similar criticism had not been directed at other countries.
Rubio calls India an important ally
Rubio said Washington needed to consider the energy requirements of countries such as India before deciding whether to impose tariffs or sanctions.“These sanctions were not just sanctions on Russia. They include tariffs on a number of countries—India, for example, and others,” Rubio said.He added that countries such as India had diversified their energy supplies but could not immediately stop importing Russian energy.The comments came amid criticism of Trump's decision to pause enforcement of the sanctions legislation. Indian-American lawmakers Ami Bera and Suhas Subramanyam criticised the move, arguing that it weakened pressure on Russia and undermined Congress' authority.
Bessent questioned over whether Ukraine is a US ally
During the same NBC programme, Bessent was asked three times whether the United States considered Ukraine an ally. He did not give a direct yes-or-no answer.“We provide the three different things ... to Ukraine, so that’s what you do for an ally. We’re not providing those to Russia,” he said on the second occasion.Bessent said Washington supported Ukraine by providing intelligence, Starlink support and allowing Nato countries to purchase American weapons for transfer to Kyiv.He also questioned why European members of Nato had not supplied Ukraine with more Patriot missile systems, arguing that they had the capability to do so.His comments followed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's appearance on the programme, during which he warned that it would be a “historic mistake” for the United States to side with Russia.“We want to trust him, and I hope that he will change his decisions because I think that it's all mistakes, and it will not help us, and it will not help the United States,” Zelensky said of Trump.Bessent criticised the Ukrainian president for publicly accusing Washington and Elon Musk of restricting resources used by Ukrainian forces. He called the allegations “very reckless”, according to NBC News.Bessent maintained that Trump wanted to end the war through a negotiated settlement, saying the conflict had to stop and that the president was working towards that outcome.