Is Donald Trump’s Trade War President Trump’s 5D Chess Move?

How Crippling Oil Prices May Be His Real Sanction on Russia

While the media obsesses over the absence of direct sanctions against Russia, they miss the larger game playing out before their eyes. President Donald J. Trump is not reacting impulsively. He’s setting up the board. And he’s doing it with the precision of a master strategist—one move ahead, always. What many call a "trade war" may actually be Trump’s most brilliant geopolitical maneuver yet.

Rather than slapping overt sanctions on the Kremlin—which often backfire, embolden dictators, or hurt allies—Trump has targeted something even more critical: Russia’s lifeline. Oil.

Russia’s war machine runs on oil revenues. Vladimir Putin’s aggression toward Ukraine, his alliance with Iran, his support for global destabilization—it all runs on the petrodollar pipeline. So what happens when oil prices crash? The Russian economy suffocates.

Trump’s tariffs and strategic trade reshuffling are not just about China, reshoring jobs, or reducing the deficit. They are indirectly tanking oil demand by disrupting global trade flows, increasing dollar strength, and lowering industrial energy consumption worldwide. Add to that Trump’s push for U.S. energy independence and American drilling, and suddenly the global oil market is oversupplied—and Russia is bleeding cash.

Instead of charging through the front door with declarations of war or empty diplomacy, Trump’s attacking from the flank. This is asymmetrical economic warfare. The media can’t see the forest for the tweets. But look closer, and it’s clear: Trump is pulling off the geopolitical equivalent of a bank shot in pool—one that ricochets through global markets and lands squarely on Putin’s wallet.

And the genius? He’s still leaving the door open for peace. Trump has offered negotiations, diplomatic off-ramps, and has made it clear he’s not interested in endless wars. He’s not humiliating Russia. He’s bleeding it out quietly—forcing Putin to the table, not with threats, but with empty coffers.

Watching President Trump in action is like watching a pool player line up a seemingly impossible trick shot. The move looks unorthodox, even chaotic. Then—crack. The cue ball spins, banks off three sides, and sinks exactly the pocket he aimed for all along.

This isn’t chaos. This is calculated. This is 5D Chess.