On Monday, President Biden will give a farewell speech at the State Department focused on his foreign policy legacy.

Earlier today, Nick Schiffren sat down with one of the key architects of that foreign policy,

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

Jake Sullivan, thanks very much. Welcome back to the news, sir. Thanks for having me.

Today, you're imposing the largest sanctions yet on Russia's energy sector,

including two of Russia's largest oil producers and ships that constitute Russia's shadow fleet

that senior officials say will cost Russia billions of dollars per month.

Why are you taking this step now and why didn't you take it sooner?

If we had sanctioned Russia's oil 18 months ago

at a time when oil prices were high, gas prices were high, it would have meant a spike at the

pump in a way that would have put pain on working people in the United States. Today, oil prices

are much lower. The oil market globally is very well supplied.

And so we have an opportunity to hit Putin in his pocketbook without hitting the American

people in theirs.

What we're giving the incoming team, the incoming administration, is real leverage in a

negotiation as they set up for diplomacy. On that diplomacy today, the Kremlin said that Putin was open to talking to President

elect Trump. Last night, President-elect Trump said that a meeting was being set up. Senior

officials tell me that you don't know exactly what Russia actually wants out of any negotiation

in Ukraine. So in that sense, is it worthwhile for Trump to have that meeting with Putin?

As long as Ukraine is determining its destiny and we are not dictating Ukraine's destiny for it,

then to me, diplomacy very much makes sense. Today is the third inauguration of Nicolas

in Venezuela, despite the fact he lost

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