Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the move “does not help peace” as Europe reels from rising energy prices linked to the Iran war.
Published on March 13, 2026
Ukraine and its European allies have criticized the decision by US President Donald Trump’s administration to partially reverse sanctions against Russia amid rising energy prices linked to the Iran war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday the move would “strengthen Russia’s position” as U.S.-backed efforts to reach a deal to end the more than four-year war appear to have stalled.
Recommended stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
“He is spending the money he earns from energy sales on weapons, and all of this is then used against us,” Zelenskyy said, speaking alongside his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, during a news conference in Paris.
“This easing (of sanctions) by the United States alone could provide Russia with around $10 billion for the war. This certainly does not help peace,” he said.
The United States on Thursday issued a 30-day waiver for countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products currently stranded at sea, as global energy markets have been rocked by the US-Israel war against Iran.
The conflict has led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical Gulf waterway through which about a fifth of the world’s oil transits, and disrupted energy production in the Middle East.
Macron and other European leaders criticized the Trump administration’s decision to ease economic restrictions against Russia, which has faced global sanctions since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, said that the measure “is very worrying, since it affects European security.”
“The growing economic pressure on Russia is decisive for it to accept a serious negotiation for a just and lasting peace,” Costa wrote in X. “The weakening of sanctions increases Russian resources to wage the war of aggression against Ukraine.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also said that “easing sanctions now, for any reason, is wrong.”
“We think that’s the wrong course of action,” Merz said. “After all, we want to make sure that Russia does not take advantage of the war in Iran to weaken Ukraine.”
Speaking alongside Zelenskyy, France’s Macron highlighted the limited and temporary nature of the 30-day US waiver, while warning Moscow that Europe would maintain its pressure against the country.
“Today Russia may believe that the war in Iran will offer it respite. It is wrong,” said the French president.
According to data analytics firm Vortexa, approximately 7.3 million barrels of Russian-sourced oil are in floating storage, while 148.6 million barrels are on vessels in transit.
Russia’s presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev said the U.S. waiver would affect 100 million barrels of Russian crude, equivalent to nearly a day of global production.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also told reporters on Friday that the Trump administration’s move was aimed at stabilizing global energy markets. “In this sense our interests coincide,” Peskov said.
Earlier this week, the International Energy Agency announced that its 32 member countries had unanimously agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves to try to lower prices.
“This is an important action aimed at alleviating the immediate impacts of the disruption on the markets,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Wednesday.
“But to be clear, the most important thing to return to stable oil and gas flows is the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz.”
