In an interview with Bloomberg TV on February 20, when asked whether the US is ready to increase or decrease sanctions against Russia depending on the negotiation process to end the Ukrainian conflict, Minister Bessent confirmed: "That is a very accurate assessment." He also emphasized: "The president is committed to ending this conflict very quickly".
President Donald Trump has mentioned the possibility of meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin this month to discuss a solution to end the conflict. However, Mr. Bessent declined to provide the specific time of the meeting.
Mr. Bessent confirmed that he will not attend the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in South Africa next week due to "domestic problems".
In the interview, Mr. Bessent did not hesitate to attack Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for not signing a $500 billion mineral supply agreement to the US. He called it part of a "s fine plan" to put Ukraine on the trajectory of the United States.
" President Zelenskiy has assured me that he will sign this agreement in Munich, but so far he has not done so," Bessent said.
On the Ukrainian side, President Zelensky has rejected the US's request to use rare earth minerals to pay off aid, saying that the actual amount of money that Washington has provided is far away to reach the figure of 500 billion USD and that the deal does not come with any specific security guarantees.
Mr. Bessent also said that in his first call with his Chinese counterpart, he will call on Beijing to reform to promote domestic consumption.
This argument is not new, as many generations of previous US Treasury Secretaries, including Ms. quan quan Yellen, have pressured China to reduce its dependence on exports. However, Beijing continues to pursue a growth policy based on investment and export.
Regarding public debt policy, Bessent Minister affirmed that the US has no plans to increase the proportion of long-term bond issuance due to obstacles from the Federal Reserve's monetary tightening policy.
Previously, during Trump's election campaign, Mr. Bessent criticized former Finance Minister quan quan Yellen for relying too much on short-term bonds to promote rapid economic growth - something Ms. Yellen denied.
"We will monitor the market and adjust according to the situation," Bessent said, denying the rumors that the US could revaluate gold reserves to reduce borrowing demand or establish a national asset fund.
