US officials ordered to draw up plan for easing sanctions on Russia

The White House had instructed the Departments of State and Treasury to prepare a list of sanctions on Russia that could be eased, Reuters reported on Monday, citing two sources including a US official with knowledge of the situation.

The Trump administration plans to use sanctions relief on certain legal entities and individuals, including some Russian oligarchs, as a bargaining tool with Moscow, the sources told Reuters, though it was not immediately clear what Washington might ask for in return.

US and Russian negotiators could meet to further discuss the matter in the coming days in a fresh round of talks aimed at improving diplomatic and economic relations between the two countries, the Reuters sources said, though neither side has yet announced when the next round of talks is due to take place.

The former director of the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control told Reuters that while US President Donald Trump could issue an executive order to allow the administration to begin easing sanctions on Russia, lifting restrictions on certain entities would require congressional approval.

The prospect of Washington offering sanctions relief to Moscow further demonstrates the continuing rapprochement between the US and Russia that has taken place since Trump’s second term as president began in January, just as the relationship between the US and Ukraine continues to sour, with Trump ordering an end all to all US military aid to Russia on Monday.