The package is ready to go, but it is unclear whether Donald Trump will approve it, as ceasefire negotiations continue, the report says

The US has finalized a new set of economic sanctions targeting Russia as leverage to force Moscow to settle the Ukraine conflict, Reuters reported on Friday, citing several sources. It remains unclear, however, whether US President Donald Trump will approve the measures.

Earlier media reports suggested that Trump has not ruled out the sanctions if a ceasefire is not reached soon. On Monday, Moscow offered a 72-hour ceasefire from May 8 to 10, portraying the initiative as a chance to begin "direct negotiations with Kiev without preconditions." Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky dismissed the overture as "manipulation," insisting on a 30-day truce.

The targets of the new sanctions under discussion include state-owned Russian energy giant Gazprom and major entities involved in the natural resources and banking sectors, an administration official told the agency, without providing specifics.

Russia has been under US sanctions over the Ukraine crisis since 2014, which were dramatically tightened after the conflict escalated in 2022. Russia has called the sanctions illegal.

The US National Security Council "is trying to coordinate some set of more punitive actions against Russia," a Reuters source familiar with the issue stated, adding that "this will have to be signed off by Trump." Another unnamed US official said, "It's totally his call."

As the Trump administration has been actively engaged in negotiations with Moscow and Kiev to end the Ukraine conflict, it reportedly floated a peace plan that includes US recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea, as well as freezing the conflict along the current front lines and acknowledging Moscow's control over large parts of the four former Ukrainian regions which voted to join Russia.

The deal would also reportedly initiate a phased removal of sanctions imposed on Russia and prevent Ukraine from joining NATO.

Meanwhile, US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has said at least 72 senators now support "bone-crushing" sanctions if Russia resists peace talks. The senator insisted that the goal of this group "is to help the president" gain leverage on Russia.

Last month, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio questioned the wisdom of placing new restrictions on Moscow, stating that the Trump administration is "hoping to see" whether diplomacy will work first. "The minute you start doing that kind of stuff, you're walking away from it, you've now doomed yourself to another two years of war and we don't want to see it happen," he said.

(RT.com)