Trump Wants 60 Days to Weigh Russia Sanctions and Tariffs, Rubio Says Ahead of India Visit
United States President Donald Trump wants a 60-day window to assess how fresh sanctions on Russia and tariffs on other countries would affect the global economy and the American economy, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in Washington on Saturday.
Mr. Rubio was responding to questions from reporters ahead of his departure for a week-long tour of Uzbekistan and India. He is scheduled to be in India on Monday.
His remarks came a day after Mr. Trump waived key provisions of the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, widely referred to as the Graham Act, which had authorised punitive tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil. The waiver offers relief to India, which has become a significant buyer of Russian crude in recent years.
“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 U.S. economy,” Mr. Rubio said, when asked about the waivers granted by Mr. Trump.
An executive order signed on Friday states that the waivers will remain in effect until the President, or the Secretary of State in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Trade Representative, determines that further action is appropriate.
Mr. Rubio said waivers were written into the law when it was passed so that Washington could weigh several developments around the world at once — including pressure on global energy supplies from the Iran war, attacks by Houthis in Saudi Arabia and the Ukraine-Russia war.
“So I think you have to take all of that into account and weigh it against each other,” he said.
“Then you've got countries like India, for example, that have voluntarily diversified their energy portfolio, but are still getting a substantial amount of energy from Russia because it's hard to pivot from one day to the next,” the Secretary of State said.
New Delhi has consistently maintained that its energy purchases are driven by the need to secure affordable fuel for its population, a position that has at times strained its ties with Western capitals.
Mr. Rubio described India as an important ally and partner of the United States, and said the President needed the period to study the various factors and arrive at “the right combination”.
Concern over West Bank violence
Separately, Mr. Rubio said the United States wants Israel to do more to deter attacks by settlers in the occupied West Bank, after video circulated widely showing an American photojournalist being assaulted.
“We’re very disturbed by those images and what we’re seeing,” he said. “We’ve asked the Israelis and continue to ask them to crack down on that stuff.”
The journalist, Heidi Levine of The Washington Post, was one of at least two people injured in Friday’s incident, which took place as Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian civilians, according to accounts of the event.
Belgium’s foreign minister said European diplomats and a French mayor were also attacked in the occupied West Bank.
Mr. Rubio said the State Department has inquired about the incident, including the attack on Ms. Levine, and that he expects to hear back from the US Embassy in Jerusalem by Sunday.
Yesh Din, an Israeli group that monitors settler activity, says settlers have carried out at least 170 attacks on Palestinians since September 27, around the start of the annual olive harvest.
