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Three world leaders — two of them members of the G7 — stood united in opposition Friday to the Trump administration’s decision to ease sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet of oil tankers.
Canada’s Mark Carney, Germany’s Friedrich Merz and Norway’s Jonas Støre were driven onto a snowy mock battlefield in the back of an armoured personnel carrier.
They made the trek to northern Norway to witness NATO’s massive Cold Response exercise, involving over 30,000 soldiers, sailors and aircrew. Canada’s contribution includes a contingent of special forces troops, who operate deep behind the mock adversary’s lines.
The fighting words, however, were reserved for the Trump administration, which caught all three leaders off guard by easing sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet — vessels already at sea.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent insisted the temporary waiver was aimed at promoting “stability in global energy markets,” which have been rocked by the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Bessent said the “short-term measure” would “not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government.”
The notion of the temporary waiver came up in discussion among G7 leaders when they met virtually on Wednesday.
“And six out of seven clearly were of the opinion that we should not release the sanctions against Russia,” said Merz, who has been withering in his criticism of the administration’s decision.
“We were a little bit surprised that we heard this morning that the American government decided differently.”
Carney said nothing has changed for Canada.
“Canada’s position is to maintain sanctions on Russia, maintain sanctions, including on the shadow fleet, which is moving this oil,” Carney said during an availability with the other leaders.
“There has been very tight co-operation between Russia and Iran at great cost to the people of Ukraine and a great threat to peace and security in Europe.”
Støre said there needs to be more pressure on Russia, not less.
The display of combat power the leaders witnessed Friday was heavily influenced by the war in Ukraine.
Norwegian defence officials have played up the fact that this iteration of the long-standing war game — which practises reinforcing Norway in the event of a major crisis — includes several hundred civilians playing various roles.
“War happens among people and that has to be factored into the realistic assessment of how a war is going to progress,” said Keir Giles, a defence expert with the U.K.-based Chatham House.
“In Ukraine, it’s been clear what the impact on civilian populations is, and that, of course, needs to be modelled in any country that actually wants to protect its civilians against conflict.”
The NATO exercise continues until March 19.
