US Holds Back China Trade Threats as It Weighs Russia Sanctions

Matthew Whitaker in Bled, Slovenia, on Sept. 2.Photographer: Petar Santini/Bloomberg

The US has held back from imposing secondary sanctions on China over its support for Russia’s war on Ukraine because broader trade negotiations are continuing, the US’s envoy to NATO said Tuesday.

President Donald Trump has threatened to slap sanctions on buyers of Russian oil unless an agreement between Kyiv and Moscow can be reached to end the conflict that’s now well into its fourth year. So far the White House has only imposed the tariffs on India over its purchases of Russian crude, but not China.