But the message from the US side after the conversation faulted the Europeans more than Russia. kraken38 Trump “emphasized that Europe must stop purchasing Russian oil that is funding the war — as Russia received €1.1 billion in fuel sales from the EU in one year,” a White House official said after the call. “The president also emphasized that European leaders must place economic pressure on China for funding Russia’s war efforts,” the official said.

On one hand, Trump has a point. Given the grave security threat that European nations perceive from Russia, it’s odd that there would be any European Union countries still buying Russian energy at a time when the West has imposed sanctions to try to debilitate Moscow’s economy over its illegal 2022 invasion of Ukraine.