As Congress passes Russia sanctions, Trump weighs business deals with Moscow before the war ends

Congress passed a bill on September 16 imposing tough new sanctions on Russia, including 100% tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas, restrictions on officials and the shadow fleet, and Trump has signaled he'll sign it. At the same time, two sources told the New York Times the administration is weighing business deals with Russia, including Arctic projects and rare earth and aluminum development, even before the war in Ukraine ends.

This marks a shift from Trump's earlier position that no deals would happen until 'we get the war settled.' The bill leaves the call on imposing the 100% tariffs entirely to the president, who has historically favored the carrot over the stick with Moscow.

China and India, the top buyers of Russian oil, objected to the sanctions, and the Kremlin warned they'd complicate peace talks. Overnight, Russian forces struck a shopping mall in Zaporizhzhia, which burned to the ground by morning.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.