NATO chief warns India, China, Brazil of 100% sanctions over Russia ties

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has delivered a stern message to India, China, and Brazil, warning that they could face serious economic consequences if they continue their business ties with Russia.

His comments follow meetings with U.S. senators in Washington, where he emphasized the urgency of pushing Russian President Vladimir Putin toward peace talks.

Rutte urges India, China, and Brazil to pressure Putin

"If you are the President of China, the Prime Minister of India, or the President of Brazil, and you continue to trade with Russia and buy their oil and gas, then you know: if the man in Moscow doesn't take the peace negotiations seriously, I will impose 100 per cent secondary sanctions," Rutte said.

"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," he added.

Rutte also made a direct appeal for diplomatic intervention. "So 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.

Trump threatens sweeping sanctions and tariffs on Russia and allies

Rutte’s remarks come just a day after former U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a new military aid package for Ukraine and announced the possibility of broad tariffs targeting Russian exports and its trading partners.

The White House confirmed that the package includes advanced weapons systems such as Patriot missiles, which Ukraine sees as vital to defending against Russian aerial attacks.

Trump also warned of aggressive economic measures if a peace agreement is not reached soon. "If we don't have a deal at the end of 50 days, it's going to be too bad. The tariffs are going to go on and other sanctions go on," Trump said.

He went on to suggest that the U.S. could act independently. "We can do secondary. We’re probably talking about 100 per cent or something like that. We can do secondary tariffs without the Senate, without the House, but what they’re crafting also could be very good," Trump had said earlier.

India among key oil buyers facing potential fallout

According to Reuters, 85 out of 100 U.S. senators currently support legislation empowering Trump to impose tariffs of up to 500 per cent on countries that assist Russia economically. India, China, and Turkey are among the largest importers of Russian crude oil. Analysts warn that these countries—particularly India—could face significant economic and diplomatic consequences if sanctions are enforced.

The situation could also disrupt global energy flows and drive prices higher, at a time when the world is already grappling with inflationary pressure and supply chain volatility.

In response to these developments, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stated, "Russia is ready to negotiate with US President Donald Trump, but the ultimatums are unacceptable and will not bring any results."