President Trump on Tuesday once more urged all European member nations of the NATO alliance to reduce their reliance on Russian oil.
During his extensive address to the United Nations General Assembly, Trump accused these partners of “funding the war against themselves.”
“Who the hell ever heard of that one?” Trump questioned derisively.
“China and India are the primary funders of the ongoing war by continuing to purchase Russian oil,” he stated. “But inexcusably, even NATO countries have not cut off much Russian energy and Russian energy products, which, as you know, I found out about two weeks ago, and I wasn’t happy.”
European nations have significantly decreased their dependence on Moscow’s oil since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, though they have not completely halted imports.
Hungary, Slovakia, France, Belgium, and Spain remain Europe’s principal importers of Russian energy.
While Hungary and Slovakia continue to acquire Russian oil, France is the second-largest European buyer of Russian energy and maintains its import of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
LNG has largely circumvented EU sanctions, and Paris’ sustained import of Russian energy is due to pre-existing “take or pay” contracts that extend through the early 2030s, obligating France to either continue importing the energy or incur penalties.
Earlier this month, Trump had taken issue with European nations that persist in purchasing Russian oil, but on Tuesday, he adjusted his comments to include all Russian energy imports – a notable shift that occurred one day after France diverged from the U.S. on the matter of Palestinian statehood.
“In the event that Russia is not ready to make a deal to end the war, then the United States is fully prepared to impose a very strong round of powerful tariffs, which would stop the bloodshed, I believe, very quickly,” Trump said. “But for those tariffs to be effective, European nations, all of you are gathered here right now, would have to join us in adopting the exact same measures.”
“You’re much closer to the city. We have an ocean in between. You’re right there, and Europe has to step it up,” he added. “They have to immediately cease all energy purchases from Russia, otherwise, we’re all wasting a lot of time.”
Trump stated he would discuss this matter with European leaders while attending the UN this week.