DOMINANT ANGLE
Dhaka is mainly gauging the energy and electoral stakes of Trump's waiver: oil prices ahead of the midterm elections, concerns from India and China, while Kiev denounces a green light for strikes.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
The decree published on Friday cites national interest to suspend sanctions and customs duties under the law signed last month (Daily Star, TBS).
- 02
The law provided for duties of up to 100% on products from the five largest Russian oil or gas importers (TBS, Daily Star).
- 03
Zelensky denounces a "sanctions blackout" and claims that more than 15 Ukrainian power sites were hit on Friday (Daily Star).
ANALYSIS
Dacca, October 17, 2026. The English-language dailies The Daily Star and TBS report on Donald Trump's decision to lift, through a decree published by the White House on Friday, October 16, the majority of sanctions and customs duties that a law he had signed last month had envisioned against Russia. The text, introduced to Congress by the late Senator Lindsey Graham, was to impose duties of up to 100% on products imported to the United States from the five largest buyers of Russian oil or gas, as well as on any country knowingly purchasing these hydrocarbons.
The Bangladeshi press reiterates the presidential justification: the decree asserts that the waiver is in the national interest of the United States. The Daily Star quotes the phrase from the text: "I am hereby waiving the application of such sanctions, restrictions, and duties provided for in the Graham Act." It recalls that the law also targeted Russian energy and defense sectors, Vladimir Putin, and high-ranking officials, as well as the "ghost fleet" of oil tankers used to circumvent Western sanctions.
The perspective is largely economic. TBS emphasizes that these measures could have driven up oil prices just weeks before the midterm elections, while Americans are already experiencing increased costs, largely attributed to the American-Israeli war against Iran, according to analysts. The media outlet also notes that India and China had expressed concerns about the proposed law, which indirectly relates the subject to Asian energy importers.
The Ukrainian aspect is treated as a reaction. Volodymyr Zelensky condemns on X a "blackout of sanctions" that alleviates pressure on the aggressor and encourages Vladimir Putin to continue his attacks; he asserts that Russia struck more than 15 Ukrainian electricity production and transmission sites on Friday. The Daily Star also situates the decree after the controversial agreement allowing Russian diesel exports in exchange for eased sanctions, which Kiev had described as a "weak decision," and notes that Ukrainian forces have resumed their strikes on Russian refineries.
The two newspapers finally observe that Donald Trump is drawing closer to Moscow while publicly criticizing the Ukrainian president, even suggesting that Kiev might need a new leader.
