US should impose sanctions on Russia, Finland's Valtonen says
'I certainly hope that President Trump will move forward with those sanctions,' Valtonen said in a Reuters NEXT Newsmaker interview.
'What we do see - and suspect now as well - is that the reason that Russia has again shown some willingness to talk, is that the increased arms deliveries (to Ukraine) are definitely piling up the pressure on Russia to find a way out of the war.'
Finland, its fellow Nordic countries and the Baltics, have been among the staunchest supporters of Ukraine.
The 2022 invasion prompted Finland, which shares a 1,340-km (833 mile) border with Russia, to join NATO two years ago, upending decades of non-alignment - REUTERS
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Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
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The chip companies' consent to cede part of chip sales underscores the urgency of their desire to cater to customers in the world's second-largest economy. The US government has cut off sales of the most capable AI chips, arguing that China might use them for military purposes, instead allowing shipment of only pared-back products. However, the Trump administration has consistently relented on trade conditions in exchange for financial concessions — and in this case officials said the chips are not the most advanced, playing down their national security implications. There's no guarantee the arrangement with Nvidia and AMD will succeed. Trade experts said it's vulnerable to legal challenges because it could be construed as an export tax, something that's not allowed under the constitution. The chipmakers themselves said it will take months to revive production of the parts — assuming Chinese customers even opt for dated components. 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'The deal also threatens to undermine the US argument that some trade controls are necessary to safeguard national security,' said Jacob Feldgoise, a researcher at the DC-based Center for Security and Emerging Technology. 'This seeming quid pro quo is unprecedented from an export-control perspective. 'The arrangement risks invalidating the national security rationale for US export controls,' he added. When the Trump administration first decided to grant export licenses to Nvidia and AMD last month, treasury secretary Scott Bessent said exports of H20 chips were part of trade talks with China and were used as 'a negotiating chip,' White House AI adviser David Sacks emphasised at the time that the product wasn't 'the latest and greatest'. Trump reiterated these points at the briefing yesterday, calling Nvidia's H20 'an old chip' and hailing the company's latest Blackwell chip as the 'super duper advanced' one. He signaled though that he'd be open to negotiate another deal with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to sell a scaled-back version of the most advanced Blackwell chip to China, too. 'I think he's coming to see me again about that,' Trump said. An Nvidia spokesman said the company follows US export rules, adding that while it hasn't shipped H20 chips to China for months, it hopes the regulations will allow US companies to compete in China. AMD similarly said in a statement yesterday that it's adhering to all US export-control laws. The US government has meanwhile begun approving export licenses for the chips. AMD's initial license applications have been cleared, the company said yesterday. The Financial Times earlier reported on the revenue-sharing deal. Trump has targeted chipmakers in the past week with a series of declarations that were light on specifics and rattled companies from Silicon Valley to Asia. 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Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Ukraine makes small territorial gains in Sumy ahead of Trump-Putin summit
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The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Russia makes sudden advance in Ukraine before Trump-Putin summit, maps show
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