By John Kruzel

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

WASHINGTON, Sept 7 (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that additional economic pressure by the United States and Europe could prompt Russian President Vladimir Putin to enter peace talks with Ukraine.

“If the U.S. and the (European Union) can come in, do more sanctions, secondary tariffs on the countries that buy Russian oil, the Russian economy will be in full collapse, and that will bring President Putin to the table,” Bessent said on NBC’s Meet the Press.

Bessent said President Donald Trump’s administration is “prepared to increase pressure on Russia.”

But, he added, “we need our European partners to follow us, because if the U.S. and the EU do this together, we are in a race now between how long can the Ukrainian military hold up versus how long can the Russian economy hold up?”

Trump has been frustrated at his inability to bring a halt to the fighting in Ukraine after he initially predicted he would be able to end the war swiftly when he took office in January.

He has withheld new sanctions on Russia and China, a top Russian oil buyer. But he has ramped up tariffs on U.S. imports from India, another top Russian energy consumer.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab

Suggested Topics:

Read Next

Explainer Explainer: How will Japan pick its next leader?

Romania’s broad coalition government survived four back-to-back no confidence votes on Sunday, allowing it to push through deficit-lowering tax hikes and spending cuts that have angered public sector workers and raised the prospect of strikes.

Site Index

About Reuters

Stay Informed

Information you can trust

Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world’s media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.

Read More