White House senior counselor Peter Navarro told Newsmax on Friday that President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs and secondary sanctions are part of a broader strategy to pressure Russia into a ceasefire with Ukraine and return to what he called "Pax Americana."

"That's clearly the strategic use of tariffs," Navarro told "The Record With Greta Van Susteren." "We're in a national emergency with Russia and [with] the way things are going; so, sanctions alone, we've learned that from the first term, they're an important weapon, but they're not sufficient."

Navarro said the Trump administration's approach would combine traditional sanctions with tariffs targeting nations that help Russia skirt restrictions through tactics such as shadow oil fleets.

"There's a lot of workarounds that China, Russia, and others — Iran — who have had sanctions on them are able to do," he said. "So the whole notion of adding tariffs plus secondary sanctions is a real hammer. So that's going to work."

Trump has warned that if Russia does not agree to a ceasefire within 50 days, the United States will impose penalties on secondary nations that continue buying Russian oil. The policy, Navarro said, is not meant to provoke but to deny Russia the financial resources to keep fighting.

"President Trump does not want to impose those. He wants peace. He's done everything possible to bring that about," Navarro said. "It's clear, though, that Russia and Ukraine are going to continue shedding blood. And this is the next step in Donald Trump's strategy."

Navarro defended the potential impact on other countries, including China and India, saying those affected by secondary sanctions would be "the whole point" of the policy.

"You can sanction Russia directly or tariff them directly with their oil. But if you have other countries that are buying that oil, a secondary tariff would be put on those countries or a sanction would be put on those countries to discourage them.

"If you cut off their oil — same with Iran — you basically diminish their capacity to wage war and open the door to peace. That's the whole philosophy. It's very straightforward," Navarro said.

When asked how Western Europe would replace Russian energy imports, Navarro acknowledged the challenge but emphasized the need to end what he described as a contradictory dynamic.

"Europe is spending a bunch of money and trying to build NATO back up," he said. While "they're giving a bunch of money to Russia, which enables them to keep waging war. Somehow, somehow we've got to square that circle."

The remarks come as the European Union approved its 18th sanctions package against Moscow, cutting oil price caps and targeting Russia's banks and military sector. EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas said on Friday, "The EU will keep raising the pressure until Russia ends its war."

Trump added earlier this week, "Well, at the end of 50 days, if we don't have a deal, it's going to be too bad."

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