Bessent thus responded (in an interview with CBS) to claims made by the Kremlin's economic envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, who stated that the Russian economy was immune to sanctions and that they would only result in higher gasoline prices in the U.S. The Trump administration's finance minister called Dmitriev a"propagandist."
"I think Russia will feel the pain immediately. I can tell you that India has already completely stopped purchasing Russian oil. Many Chinese refineries have stopped buying them. Margaret, are you really going to publish what a Russian propagandist says? Because what else can he say? That: 'oh, this is terrible, and that this will bring Putin to the negotiating table'?" - ironically Scott Bessent in a conversation with a journalist.
"Of course, the Russian economy is a war economy. Economic growth is practically zero. Inflation, I believe, exceeds 20 percent (Russian statistics say 8.4 percent), and everything we do will lead Putin to negotiations. Oil finances the Russian war machine, and I think we can significantly reduce his profits," he added.
Bessent stated that year-on-year Russia's revenues from oil sales have fallen by 20 percent, and he suspects that the sanctions will reduce them by another 20-30 percent.
"President Trump was criticized for not doing enough. Now he's made this bold move, and you're quoting a Russian propagandist," Bessent told the journalist.
Dmitriev was scheduled to meet with Special Envoy for Peacekeeping Steve Witkoff in Florida on Saturday, October 25th. It is known that he met with pro-Russian Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna on Sunday. On Saturday, in an interview with Fox News, he argued that an agreement to end the war in Ukraine was close.
Bessent announces imminent US-China agreement
In addition to the issue of sanctions against Russia, Bessent announced in Sunday media appearances the conclusion of a preliminary framework agreement with China, announcing the withdrawal of the threat of imposing an additional 100% tariff on Chinese goods. He stated that at the same time, the threat of imposing controls on the export of Chinese rare earth metals to countries around the world would be withdrawn. This is said to be the result of his discussions with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.
The agreement is expected to be finalized during Thursday's meeting of the world leaders—Donald Trump and Xi Jinping—in South Korea. Bessent announced that the leaders will then"consummate" the agreement on the takeover of TikTok in the United States by an American consortium.
