Donald Trump waives congressionally approved US sanctions on Russia

United States President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday waiving sanctions that Congress had voted to place on Russia. DW, The New York Times, and Bloomberg reported that the decision prevents the sanctions from taking effect as originally planned. [1][10][11]

In a statement released by the White House, Donald Trump stated he submitted a certification to Congress asserting that issuing the waiver is in the national interests of the United States, DW reported. DW also noted that India, a major purchaser of Russian oil, was among several nations that expressed concerns regarding the sanctions legislation. [1]

The White House move occurred one week after Donald Trump announced that the United States had agreed to purchase diesel from Russia in an attempt to reduce global energy prices, according to DW. Fox News and Newsweek reported that experts and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed concerns regarding the diesel deal. [1][2][3]

The executive order follows previous statements by Donald Trump that the United States is engaged in denuclearization discussions with Russia and China, Al Jazeera and Yahoo reported. Donald Trump noted that the United States and Russia each possess more than 4,000 nuclear warheads, according to Al Jazeera. [4][5][7]