NATO secretary general Mark Rutte urged the leaders of India, China, and Brazil to speak to Putin and make him commit to peace talks. Photo: courtesy Wikimedia Commons
NATO warns India, China, Brazil of 100 pc sanctions over Russia trade
NATO secretary general Mark Rutte urged the nations to press Putin for peace, echoing Trump's prior threat of severe tariffs on countries buying Russian oil
The secretary general of NATO Mark Rutte has warned India, China, and Brazil of “100 per cent secondary sanctions” if they continue doing business with Russia.
Mark Rutte, speaking to reporters after meeting US senators on Wednesday (July 16), urged the leaders in New Delhi, Beijing, and Brasilia to impress upon Russian President Putin to take peace negotiations seriously.
Also Read: Trump warns Russia’s allies of 100 pc tariffs over Ukraine; Russian minister responds
“If you are the President of China, the Prime Minister of India, or the President of Brazil, and you continue to trade with Russia and buy their oil and gas, then you know: if the man in Moscow doesn’t take the peace negotiations seriously, I will impose 100 per cent secondary sanctions,” said Rutte.
‘This might hit you very hard’
The NATO secretary general added, “My encouragement to these three countries, particularly, is: if you live now in Beijing, or in Delhi, or you are the president of Brazil, you might want to take a look into this, because this might hit you very hard.”
He urged the leaders of the three nations to speak to Putin and make him commit to peace talks.
Also Read: Trump warns Russia of 'severe tariffs' if there is no deal on Ukraine in 50 days
“So please make the phone call to Vladimir Putin and tell him that he has to get serious about peace talks, because otherwise this will slam back on Brazil, on India, and on China in a massive way,” said Rutte.
Trump’s warning
Rutte’s remarks came a day after US President Donald Trump announced American plans of extending military support for Ukraine, and his threat to impose sweeping tariffs on Russia and its trading partners, specifically the BRICS countries that have been buying Russian oil and gas.
Trump warned of “biting 100 per cent tariffs on Russian exports”, and also said there would be secondary sanctions on countries that continue to buy oil from Russia if no peace deal with Ukraine is arrived at within 50 days.
Also Read: India’s import of Russian oil hits 11-month high in June
News reports say that a huge majority of US senators – 85 out of 100 – support fresh legislation that would give Trump the authority to impose tariffs up to 500 per cent on countries that trade with Russia.
“If we don’t have a deal at the end of 50 days, it’s going to be too bad. The tariffs are going to go on and other sanctions go on,” said Trump.
Russia’s response
Responding to the latest threat from Trump, Russia refused to be cowed down.
“Russia is ready to negotiate with US President Donald Trump, but the ultimatums are unacceptable and will not bring any results,” said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.