Washington, July 17: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday warned that India, China and Brazil could face severe secondary sanctions if they continued to maintain economic ties with Russia, amid renewed efforts by the West to pressure Moscow into peace negotiations over its war in Ukraine.
Speaking after meetings with U.S. senators in Washington, Rutte said countries conducting business with Russia should reconsider their positions or face serious economic consequences.
“My encouragement to these three countries, particularly is, if you live now in Beijing, or in Delhi, or you are the President of Brazil, you might want to take a look into this, because this might hit you very hard,” Rutte told reporters.
The remarks came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a new tranche of military aid for Ukraine and threatened to impose 100% secondary tariffs on any buyer of Russian exports unless a peace agreement is reached within 50 days.
Rutte, who met with Trump earlier in the week, called on the three nations to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin directly. “Please make the phone call to Vladimir Putin and tell him that he has to get serious about peace talks, because otherwise this will slam back on Brazil, on India and on China in a massive way,” he said.
U.S. Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican, welcomed the pressure campaign but expressed concern over the 50-day timeline. “Putin would try to use the 50 days to win the war, or to be better positioned to negotiate a peace agreement after having murdered and potentially collected more ground,” he said. “We should look at the current state of Ukraine today and say, no matter what you do over the next 50 days, any of your gains are off the table.”
Rutte said Europe would step up its financial contribution to ensure Ukraine is in a strong position during any negotiations. Under the new U.S.-European agreement, Washington will “massively” supply weapons to Kyiv, including air defense systems, missiles, and ammunition, with funding largely covered by European allies.
When asked if long-range missiles were part of the plan, Rutte said the assistance includes “both defensive and offensive” weaponry, but added that specifics were being coordinated by the Pentagon, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, and the Ukrainian military.
The warning to India, China and Brazil signals an escalation in efforts by Western allies to isolate Russia economically, and could complicate diplomatic relations with major non-aligned powers that have resisted taking sides in the ongoing conflict.
