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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Pjotr Sauer

Surprise sanctions look to have ended Trump and Putin’s Groundhog Day

Traditional Russian wooden nesting dolls, Matryoshka dolls, depicting Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
The US has announced sanctions on two of Russia’s biggest oil producers and about three dozen of their subsidiaries. Photograph: Olesya Kurpyayeva/AFP/Getty Images

For once, a phone call with Vladimir Putin did not lead to a thaw.

By imposing sanctions on Russia this week, Donald Trump broke from his usual pattern of easing tensions with the Kremlin after conversations with the Russian leader, when threats of pressure often give way to talk of renewed dialogue.

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