Brief
Zelenskyy urges U.S. support for Russia sanctions after Trump pauses them
Zelenskyy appealed to U.S. citizens and lawmakers to push for the sanctions despite President Trump's pause.
By Felo News Desk · Published
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday urged Americans to speak out in favor of a new U.S. sanctions package targeting Russia, hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order pausing the measures, the Associated Press reported via Yahoo News.
What happened
Trump’s order, signed on Oct. 16, halted a bipartisan sanctions package that had been designed to pressure Russia’s finance, energy and defense sectors. The pause came two days before the law‑mandated implementation deadline and followed a recent deal to import Russian diesel into the United States.
That same night, Russian forces killed at least four people in Ukraine, including an ambulance driver, and wounded dozens, according to Ukrainian officials. Russian authorities also said Ukrainian drones killed a woman in a border region and disrupted flights at Moscow’s airports.
What the reports add
The article notes that Zelenskyy described the pause as “unfortunate” and said it ignored the Lindsey Graham Act, which was intended to impose “truly effective pressure on Russia.” He thanked Democrats and Republicans who backed the legislation and warned that blocking it would encourage further Russian attacks.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a co‑drafter of the bill, condemned the pause, saying Trump was turning his back on “the majority of Americans, their representatives in both houses of Congress, and our European allies.” Blumenthal added that the waivers “have nothing to do with our national security, and everything to do with sucking up to Vladimir Putin.”
What was said
“A decision was unfortunately made in America to completely disregard the Lindsey Graham Act, which was supposed to impose truly effective pressure on Russia to bring this war to an end,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media, per the Yahoo article.
He later told journalists, “Nevertheless, we very much hope — and I personally hope — that the president of the United States of America will do everything possible to make Putin stop the killing, stop the attacks on our energy infrastructure, and end this war.”
Blumenthal said, “These waivers have nothing to do with our national security, and everything to do with sucking up to Vladimir Putin.”
How it came about
The sanctions package, named after the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, passed Congress with bipartisan majorities in September and was signed by Trump in September. The pause follows a week‑old diesel import deal that the Treasury waived until April 2027, a development covered in Felo’s earlier article Trump pauses new Russia sanctions, citing national interest. Zelenskyy’s appeal comes amid escalating Russian attacks as winter approaches, heightening Ukraine’s urgency for sustained economic pressure on Moscow.
Key facts
- President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Oct. 16 to pause a bipartisan sanctions package targeting Russia. (news.yahoo.com)
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the pause "unfortunate" and urged U.S. citizens to support the sanctions. (news.yahoo.com)
- Sen. Richard Blumenthal said the pause turned Trump's back on the majority of Americans and European allies. (news.yahoo.com)
- Russian attacks overnight killed at least four people in Ukraine, including an ambulance driver. (news.yahoo.com)
Sources
- [1] news.yahoo.com — originally reported as “Zelenskyy urges support for new US sanctions on Russia after Trump puts them on hold”
