Yesterday, President Donald Trump told European officials that he was prepared to impose large-scale new tariffs on India and China to push President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table with Ukraine—but only if EU countries did the same.

According to media reports, Trump made this request when he invited senior U.S. and EU officials to a meeting in Washington. The U.S. is expected to introduce tariffs, but only on the condition that Europe imposes similar measures.

This proposal posed a challenge, given that a number of countries, including Hungary, had previously blocked stricter EU sanctions targeting Russia's energy sector. Such measures would require the backing of all member states.

Trump's proposal triggered a mixed reaction in European political circles. On the one hand, U.S. plans to impose tariffs added further pressure to Russia's energy sector. On the other, the strict condition of parallel EU action heightened internal divisions and cast doubt on the possibility of achieving consensus. The potential consequences of such tariffs could be significant. Russia's energy sector is a critical part of its economy, and reduced export revenues could negatively affect its financial stability. However, retaliatory measures by Russia against European countries could also inflict substantial damage on Europe's economy, particularly in the energy sphere.

Thus, Trump's proposal created a complex political dilemma for the EU. European leaders had to weigh the economic and political interests of their countries and assess the possible consequences for relations with the U.S. and Russia.

Other potential measures under discussion by U.S. and EU officials include further sanctions on Russia's shadow fleet of oil tankers, as well as restrictions on Russian banks, the financial sector, and major oil companies.

Trump's proposal, first reported by the Financial Times, came after the deadline given to Putin to hold a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expired, with no indication that the Russian leader—who met Trump in Alaska late last month—was genuinely interested in personal peace talks.

Later on Tuesday, Trump posted on social media that the U.S. and India were continuing talks to remove trade barriers and expressed optimism about reaching a settlement. He also said he looked forward to speaking with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the coming weeks.

This type of news did not have a significant impact on currency markets, as the expected measures remain under discussion. However, the intraday trend of strengthening of the U.S. dollar against risk assets, which formed yesterday, may continue today.

As for the current technical picture of EUR/USD, buyers now need to break above 1.1730. Only this will allow for a test of 1.1760. From there, the pair could move up toward 1.1813, though achieving this without support from major players will be quite difficult. The farthest target stands at the 1.1866 high. If the instrument declines, I expect significant action from large buyers only around 1.1690. If none appear, it would be better to wait for a retest of the 1.1665 low or consider opening long positions from 1.1630.

As for the current technical picture of GBP/USD, buyers need to break the nearest resistance at 1.3550. Only this will allow for a move toward 1.3590, above which a breakout will be difficult. The farthest target lies at the 1.3615 level. If the pair falls, the bears will attempt to regain control at 1.3485. If successful, breaking this range will deal a serious blow to bullish positions and push GBP/USD down to the 1.3450 low, with prospects of reaching 1.3415.