Putin says he will never bow to US but concedes sanctions may cause ‘some losses’

China and India likely to scale back Russian oil imports as Trump tries to bring an end to war in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin. File picture: Kristina Kormilitsyna/AP

Vladimir Putin has said Russia will never bow to US pressure but conceded new sanctions could cause some economic pain, as China and India were reported to be scaling back Russian oil imports after Washington targeted Moscow’s two largest producers.

The US on Wednesday imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, as well as nearly three dozen of their subsidiaries, as the Trump administration increased pressure on the Kremlin to negotiate an end to its war against Ukraine. The EU separately agreed to a phased ban on the import of Russian liquefied natural gas, and added two Chinese oil refiners to its Russian sanctions list.