Zelensky criticises US Russia sanctions waiver as Rubio explains review

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky criticised Washington's decision to waive new sanctions targeting Russia, warning that the move could benefit Moscow, according to Swedish news service Omni citing international reporting. His response followed a US executive order implementing the Graham Act.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration wanted to examine how the proposed tariffs and sanctions would affect the US and world economies, according to Omni's account of Reuters reporting. Omni described a review period of up to 60 days, although the underlying executive order itself does not specify a fixed expiration date for its waivers.

President Donald Trump separately defended the decision as beneficial to the United States and the wider world, according to Ukrainska Pravda citing comments carried by White House press-pool reporters. Those comments expressed the president's assessment, not evidence that existing sanctions had been removed.

The order waives specified new duties and restrictions under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act. It explicitly preserves sanctions imposed under certain pre-existing executive orders. European and British sanctions also remain separate from the US decision.

The different statements show a dispute over whether delaying additional economic pressure on Russia is justified while fighting continues in Ukraine. No new legal change beyond the existing waiver order was verified in the supplied coverage.