Kremlin lashes out at Trump over ‘anti-Russian policy’ as US boards vessel known to carry sanctioned Russian oil
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s top diplomat, blasted the Trump administration, griping that Washington talked about cooperation during the Alaska summit but instead has waged an economic war against Moscow. AP
Russia’s top diplomat criticized the Trump administration, saying Washington spoke about cooperation during the Alaska summit but has since intensified economic pressure on Moscow.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the US continues to pursue what he called an “anti-Russian policy,” despite public statements suggesting a possible improvement in relations after President Trump welcomed President Vladimir Putin to Anchorage in August. Lavrov pointed to new sanctions and Western efforts targeting Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” of oil tankers.
“Despite declarations about moving toward full-scale, broad cooperation, everything looks the opposite in practice,” Lavrov said. “New sanctions are being introduced, and a war against shadow fleet tankers is being waged on the high seas.” Many of the US sanctions on Russia are tied to Putin’s ongoing war in Ukraine, and US officials have said the sanctions could be lifted if Moscow ends the conflict.
Lavrov suggested that relations between the two countries have worsened since the Alaska summit, as Putin continues to insist on control of Ukraine’s Donbas region as a condition for ending the war. “We were told that the Ukrainian issue must be resolved. In Anchorage, we accepted the United States’ proposal. To put it straightforwardly, they proposed, and we agreed — the problem should be solved,” Lavrov said. “President Putin has repeatedly stated that for Russia, this is what matters.”
The remarks came Monday, the same day the US boarded an oil tanker known for carrying sanctioned Russian and Venezuelan oil after it allegedly violated President Trump’s “quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean,” according to the Pentagon. “The Aquila II was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean. It ran, and we followed,” the Pentagon said in a post on X. “The Department of War tracked and hunted this vessel from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean.”
It was the second ship the US has boarded this year that officials suspect is part of Moscow’s shadow fleet. In January, the US military seized the Russian-flagged Marinera — formerly known as the Bella 1 under a Panamanian flag — for allegedly breaking the embargo and carrying sanctioned Venezuelan oil.
Last week, President Trump reached an agreement with India to reduce tariffs if New Delhi stops buying Russian oil. The US also sanctioned two of Russia’s major oil companies — Rosneft and Lukoil — late last year, targeting a key source of Moscow’s revenue as the war continues into its fourth year.
“In the economic sphere, the United States has effectively declared a goal of economic domination,” Lavrov said. “The Americans aim to control all energy supply routes for all leading countries across continents, including in Europe, where they monitor the Nord Stream pipelines, the Ukrainian gas transport system, and the TurkStream pipeline.”
Lavrov also noted that in April 2025, President Trump renewed some sanctions first imposed during the Biden administration, including measures freezing Russia’s gold and foreign currency reserves.
“It explicitly states that this is ‘in connection with Russia’s hostile foreign policy behavior,’” Lavrov said.
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