Zelensky criticizes Trump’s suspension of Russia sanctions

US President Trump suspends planned Russia sanctions – as attacks on the infrastructure increase, according to Ukrainian head of state Zelensky. He warns that Trump’s decision will only further strengthen Moscow. Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky has criticized the suspension of the new US sanctions against Russia. A relaxation of pressure on Russia and financial rewards are for Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin only incentive to continue striking, Zelensky told Telegram. Earlier, US President Donald Trump had put the tariffs provided for in a new sanctions package against Russia on ice shortly before their entry into force. Recently, Trump had also - despite existing sanctions - agreed with Putin diesel supplies from Russia and thus attracted the criticism of Zelenskyi. Warning of the pre-winter blackout, Trump decided to take the step just one day after Moscow carried out one of the most massive blows against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, Zelensky complained. "More than 15 major power generation and transmission facilities in various regions of Ukraine have been attacked." Moscow has expanded its attacks and is trying to destroy the country’s resources. According to Ukrainian authorities, the attacks killed and injured. Hundreds of thousands of people were without electricity and heating. "Russia is trying to bring about a blackout in Ukraine shortly before winter," Zelensky said. “It takes pressure to stop this.” The US sanctions package "could have helped enormously," stressed the Ukrainian head of state. And it could still do that if the US were to use it again. Zelenskyi: Starlink continues to be throttled In addition to the suspension of the sanctions package, according to Zelenskyi, there are still difficulties with the military-important satellite Internet Starlink. It continues to function over Ukraine only throttled, while tests in European countries have shown that the throttling affects only his country, Zelensky said, according to media reports. "That means it's a planned operation." The satellites of the US company SpaceX did not track the antennas on flying objects that fly faster than 161 kilometers per hour, Zelensky said. This hinders Ukrainian drones both in the defense of Russian jet drones and in their own attacks. In a phase of escalating Russian air strikes, the Ukrainian military has been complaining about the speed limit since mid-week. Regarding the tests, Zelensky said that cars in EU countries were driven at a speed of 180 kilometres per hour. Their satellite connection was not broken off. "We have appropriate records and evidence." How meaningful such tests are, however, is difficult to estimate. Starlink belongs to the company network of Elon Musk, but the military special function Starshield is controlled by the Pentagon. Statements from Musk and the White House do not give a clear picture about possible speed throttling. Meanwhile, media in Kiev, citing the Ukrainian military, had reported that Starlink was functioning again without limits. The stop of the US sanctions package is, according to geopolitics expert Klemens Fischer, “guaranteed the darkest moment for Ukrainians in this war so far”. Trump did not support Kiev from the beginning as the Western states would have liked, said the professor of international relations and geopolitics at the University of Cologne, the Deutschlandfunk. But now the US president is even more radical, so Fischer – probably also with regard to the midterm elections on 3 November and the high energy costs as a result of the Iran war. Even if Trump were to turn to Ukraine again after the midterms, the coming weeks could cause long-term damage, Fischer warned. Ukraine, for example, is almost 100 percent dependent on the United States for air defense. Criticism of Democrats and Republicans Also from the own ranks, Trump’s decision is sharply criticized. “It is outrageous that this administration is surrendering to a Russian dictator who illegally invaded Ukraine and slaughtered innocent civilians every day,” Republican Senator Thom Tillis wrote on Platform X. If Trump really wanted to lower energy prices, he could do so by solving the conflict with Iran, not by doing President Putin a favor. House Republican Don Bacon criticized X for prolonging the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine instead of ending it. There was also criticism from the Democrats. Senator Richard Blumenthal wrote on X that the suspension had nothing to do with U.S. national security. It only serves to flatter Putin. “Donald Trump confirms once again that he is on the side of a bloodthirsty criminal and supporter of the Russian war machine,” he said. Trump is acting against the majority of Americans, their representatives in both chambers of Congress and against the European allies of the United States. Moscow praised the US decision as “an important and truly historic moment”. The step promotes dialogue and mutually beneficial cooperation, Kremlin envoy for international economic cooperation Kirill Dmitriev told Telegram.