Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 16, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Japan's finance minister discusses strategies to pressure Russia, focusing on G7 coordination and challenges in imposing tariffs on Russian oil buyers.
TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan's Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said on Tuesday the government will carefully consider what measures would be most effective in pressuring Russia, while noting challenges in imposing higher tariffs on countries buying Russian oil.
His comments come after the U.S. urged the Group of Seven nations on Friday to impose tariffs on buyers of Russian oil during a call with G7 finance ministers as they discussed further sanctions on Russia.
"It's important that Japan thoroughly consider what measures would be most effective and coordinate with other G7 countries," Kato said in a regular press conference.
However, Kato said it would be difficult to impose higher tariffs on specific countries just for their purchases of Russian oil, as long as they comply with the World Trade Organization rules.
(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato stated that Japan will carefully consider effective measures to pressure Russia, emphasizing the importance of coordination with other G7 nations.
Kato's comments followed a call from the U.S. urging G7 nations to impose tariffs on buyers of Russian oil, as part of discussions on further sanctions.
Kato noted that it would be difficult to impose higher tariffs on specific countries for purchasing Russian oil, as long as they comply with World Trade Organization rules.
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