Trump Warns 'Very Severe' Sanctions for Russia Trade Partners
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- Donald Trump warned on Sunday (November 17, 2025) that any country doing business with Russia will be "very severely sanctioned," responding to reporters' questions about whether it was time for Congress to act against Moscow.
- Trump said he is "okay with" Republican lawmakers advancing "very tough" sanctions legislation targeting Russia, telling reporters, "I hear they're doing that, and that's okay with me."
- Trump revealed he suggested adding Iran to the sanctions package, expanding the bill's scope beyond Russian trade partners to penalize countries doing business with Tehran as well.
- The proposed sanctions target not just Russia but all third-country entities maintaining commercial ties with Moscow, representing an extraterritorial economic weapon aimed at isolating Putin.
- The push aligns the White House with Congressional Republicans pressing maximum economic pressure on the Kremlin, months into a broader US effort to weaken Russia's war-fighting capacity.
- Trump framed the sanctions as a direct pressure tool against Putin, taking questions from reporters who raised the prospect of new Congressional measures targeting the Russian president.
Why it matters: By endorsing sanctions on any country trading with Russia — and suggesting Iran be added — Trump effectively gives Congressional Russia hawks the green light to draft secondary-sanctions legislation that would punish third-party commercial partners. The biggest potential targets are countries with significant Russia trade ties, including India and China; the threat forces a choice between US market access and Russian business. Iran's potential inclusion broadens the bill from a Russia-specific measure into a wider US coercive trade tool.
