Washington’s double standard on Putin? Sanctions court, then sanctions waiver

Brussels will host security talks on Ukraine on 27 or 28 October, as Washington faces scrutiny over its shifting posture toward Moscow. In just two weeks, the United States sanctioned the international court prosecuting Vladimir Putin, waived its own sanctions on Russia, and described the Russian president as “humanitarian.” The sequence has raised questions among allies about the consistency of US policy on accountability for the war in Ukraine.