The Putin Squeeze: Trump Cancels Summit, Sanctions Russia’s Oil “Lifeblood”

The Trump administration has dramatically escalated its campaign against Russia, canceling a planned summit with Vladimir Putin and simultaneously imposing crippling sanctions on the “lifeblood” of his economy: the Rosneft and Lukoil oil companies.
President Trump personally confirmed the summit’s cancellation, telling reporters in the Oval Office, “It didn’t feel right to me.” He added, “It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get,” signaling a deep breakdown in negotiations between Washington and Moscow.
Hours later, the Treasury Department dropped its economic hammer. Secretary Scott Bessent said the sanctions were a direct consequence of Putin’s “refusal to end this senseless war” and called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Ukraine.
This represents a major policy reversal for the administration, which had previously been accused of coercing Kyiv to make concessions. Now, the White House appears to be focusing its frustration squarely on Putin’s “maximalist demands.”
Experts view the targeting of Rosneft, in particular, as highly significant. The focus now shifts to enforcement: whether the US will pursue foreign banks and traders who continue to facilitate Russian oil sales, which will determine if this is a “long-term, strategic squeeze” on Putin’s war chest.