Key Words – The European Union is proposing a new, 18th round of sanctions against Russia, which would ban new Russian gas contracts and cut the price cap on its oil, in an effort to pressure Moscow into peace negotiations.
-This move, championed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, is supported by allies like Canada, which announced its own new aid and sanctions package at the G7 summit.
-However, the plan faces resistance from EU members like Hungary and Slovakia, and a lack of support from US President Donald Trump, who expressed skepticism about the sanctions’ effectiveness and cost, preferring to push for negotiations.
Tough Sanctions are on the Table to Stop Russia in Ukraine
The European Commission is seeking to put pressure on Russia to end the war in Ukraine, and put forward a plan to do so at the G7 summit in Canada last week.
According to Al Jazeera, the plan would “immediately ban new contracts to buy Russian gas,” and also “cut short any long-term contracts at the end of 2027.”
“To achieve peace through strength, we must put more pressure on Russia to secure a real ceasefire, to bring Russia to the negotiating table, and to end this war,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the time. “Sanctions are critical to that end.”
The EU has also pushed to cut the price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $45.
However, as the plan was unveiled at the G7, Russia launched strikes on Kyiv, including 32 missiles and 440 drones.
Hungary and Slovakia remain holdouts within the EU when it comes to the sanctions, as the countries are landlocked and would suffer from the lack of access to Russian energy.
Canada Steps In
Also at the G7, Canada announced both $1.7 billion in military aid to Ukraine, as well as its own sanctions targeting Russia. The aid includes drones, ammunition, and armoured vehicles.
“To be absolutely clear, this support will be unwavering until we get a just peace for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said at the time, according to the Kyiv Independent.
The Canada sanctions, meanwhile, target 77 individuals and 39 entities, as well as upgraded sanctions against Russian oil and gas giant Surgutneftegas.
No More From Trump
When President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would wait two more weeks before deciding whether to attack Iran, it was a familiar sentiment from the president.
When asked in late May, per MSNBC, whether he still believed that Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted peace, Trump answered, “I can’t tell you that, but I’ll let you know in about two weeks… within two weeks, we’re going to find out very soon.”
As usual, Trump did not stick to the two-week pledge. And for the three weeks after that, Russia and Ukraine continued to bombard each other.
Then, at the G7 summit, Trump hinted that no more sanctions on Russia would be coming, at least from the U.S.
“Well Europe is saying that, but they haven’t done it yet,’ Trump told reporters at the G7, about the EU push, Politico reported at the summit.
“Let’s see them do it first,” he later added. Trump made clear that he would prefer to push peace negotiations to end the war, rather than pursue sanctions.
“When I sanction a country, that costs the U.S. a lot of money — a tremendous amount of money,” Trump said during an appearance with British Prime Minister Kier Starmer. “It’s not just, let’s sign a document. You’re talking about billions and billions of dollars. Sanctions are not that easy. It’s not just a one-way street.”
An Early Exit
Trump ended up leaving the G7 summit early to return to Washington and deal with the fallout from Israel’s strikes on Iran and Iran’s retaliation.
In addition, per CNN, Trump also had issues with operational security at the summit in Canada.
“I don’t believe in telephones, because people like you listen to them,” he told reporters on his plane, as he left Canada. “Being on the scene is much better, and we did everything I had to do at the G7.”
Trump, CNN added, is “never one for group meetings, nor particularly fond of rustic lodges.”
The CNN report also noted that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew to the summit and had a meeting with Trump on his schedule. However, due to the early departure, “the two men did not cross paths.”
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
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Swamplaw Yankee
June 21, 2025 at 5:36 am
The G7 was a meeting about Blasphemy: but whose book was being thumped by how many shoes?
The Yankee Empire is not the EU Empire. Period. What is the biggest difference? Well, how about the First Amendment. The EU has suddenly tranzed into Formal “Anti” first amendment philosophy. The Brussel style nebulous talk of George Orwell has suddenly blossomed into “Blasphemy Blabber”.
Who warned the USA inner beltway aquarium intellects that Brussel pencil pushers wanted to Genghis Ghan that Musk irritant with their EU “Blasphemy Blabber”. Yes, that X tech that Musk directs Yankee style, suddenly transzed over there inside vague Europe into a “formal” hate object. If you are pro EU then you “must” hate the X tech and the Big Boss, Musk. Otherwise: Blasphemy is on the fake “legal” books.
The G7 is composed of countries that all once had zero legal “Genghis Khan” lawyer wantobees on the attacks on the concept of the First Amendment.
Now, the G7 is being torn by the big “dark” cash that supports the Gestapo that create over paid “Hate Hunter Squads” to catch some senior citizen who may still think free speech is allowed inside Brussels land!
In this reality, what can the new 3T do to showcase his 5 year reign as leader of the Canucks. 3T = third Trudeau. 3t will die before he allows any Liberal to even try to touch the “Anti” First Amendment Elephant herd rampaging thru fake legal blabbers in the EU.
Just as the Lefty-pinkoe-commie crowd hide in Democrat USA, the same crowd hide in the long reign of the TC: Trudeau cabal. With 5 years of legal reign the pinkoe crowd in Canada will have a huge PBR to slime thru any action that 3T may wish to evoke. While called the CBC, this pundit army will George Orwell the Yankee MSM with Canuck sweet nothings that the Yankee MSM will swallow 99.9 %.
The USA needs to promptly address the 3T problem. The Yankee inner beltway will soon find out that Blasphemy is possible from many books. That the MAGA POTUS Trump joyfully screws the Democratic Ukraine ( killing off its father fighter men) so freely, the same freedom to screw the USA is being paid for EU “Arabella type” dark money. The G7 cash boys are powerless to stop the EU Hate Squads, dark money funded, ready to take down that vile Must and his frightful X. -30-
Swamplaw Yankee
June 22, 2025 at 12:09 am
Putin’s orc muscovite elite has a great advantage in the death struggle to kill the concept integral in the First Amendment legal structure.
Putin’s child groomers, dreams of the hour, when Putin’s delusion of peasant russian history is rubber stamped by the EU inner state as “legal EU history”. A Trump like deal will be cut, where the EU flunkies legally prohibit legitimate history for a deal with Putin not to attack the well paid EU rabbit warrens in Brussels. Yeah, the EU legally gives Putin the free, no-cost, giveaway of the ancient Ukrainian soil of Crimea and the Black/Azov Sea zones! The EU so truthful justification: the POTUS Obama-Biden-Democrat Cabal betrayed the WEST in 2014 with their unilateral greenlighting of the free, giveaway of the advantage of the WEST in the Middle East by covertly abandoning any USA resistance to the prime, vile cold war enemy: Putin, illegal takeover of Ukrainian soil and families.
The G7 has been split by the EU empire vicious attack on ‘Free Speech”. The shock of watching armies of EU politicos pooping out “redlines” when the Yankee MAGA spoke in Europe about the EU attack on the concept of free speech was so, so revealing to the detached observer. What are they really stating to the still “free” Yankee MSM?
Many op-ed journalist data has been published on the nebulous, in-direct techniques the EU “Hate Machine” money machine employs. The “dark money” is less identified than the near secret leftie-pinkoe “Arabella” charity dark money scam here inside the USA.
So, MAGA POTUS Trump fled the G7 early. Smart: a real journalist might have asked substantive questions. The expanding schism between the warring EU and Yankee empires was left with lots of fertilizer to deepen and expand. The Democratic side of the G7 seemed unable to emerge in the MSM coverage, as if the G7 was exactly like the G20.
The local boy, 3T, was able to sprinkle a few pennies on the butchery of his forefathers that the G7 (8) so forcefully sidestepped in 2014. Again, 3T continues to fund a pennies worth of “PR salve” when drastic action from Canada is needed this second!
3T was able to deflect from any mention of 5% for the Canadian defense budget of 2015. 3T can just enron a few columns of current federal funding and, magic, the fake Canadian defence budget is at 3, 4 or 5%.
The real schism, the ugly battle between the EU and Yankee empire just grows. The huge cash the EU blows into the army of “Hate Squads” would have stopped the Putin re-conquest of Ukraine back in 2014. This EU dark cash is thirsting to attack Musk, X and the Yankee tech giants.
The reality is that AI and the WUHAN MSM scam has thrown the G7 crowd into a gossamer territory. The very easy technique that the WHO inner state used to muzzle scientists and doctors around the world is there and open to “HATE SPEECH” fascists to employ. Those right wing haters are just so un-hygenic!
The 3T, now legally head of Canada for 5 years, will make a lot of George Orwell blab, that his CBC mega MSM machine will market world wide. Can the Yankee MSM actually have the capacity to deal with this G7 PR costuming? The speculation from here is that the G7 will blab Ukraine liberty while surrendering to Putin. 3T will refuse to confront MAGA Trump to make Putin pay $10,000,000 in gold bullion for each and every kidnapped victim as compensation and reparation before any other deflections are used.
Every G7 country will self sing along that Putin has the cherished 2014 gift from POTUS Obama-Biden to 11 years of free russian language lessons and table top dancing, moscow style. Let the Ukie kiddies table top dance, as the G7 heads wish it. -30-