The legislation aims to choke off financial resources that support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort in Ukraine
Digital Desk: The US President Donald Trump has given his approval to a bipartisan Russia Sanctions Bill that could impose severe penalties on countries continuing to trade with Moscow, including India, China and Brazil, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has said.
Graham described Trump’s backing of the proposed Graham, lumenthal sanctions bill, which would authorize the US President to levy tariffs of up to 500 per cent on nations that knowingly purchase Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports. The legislation aims to choke off financial resources that support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort in Ukraine.
Graham said he met Trump at the White House on Wednesday, where the President expressed his support for the bill that has been under discussion for several months. A White House official also confirmed the development while speaking to the Associated Press.
“This will be well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace, while Putin continues to talk without action and innocent lives are still being lost,” Graham said in a statement.
According to Graham, the bill could be brought to a vote in the US Senate as early as next week, although the timeline remains uncertain. The Senate is expected to first take up a scaled-back government funding package currently under consideration in the House. This would be followed by a Senate recess around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which could delay proceedings.
The legislation, jointly authored by Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, has garnered dozens of co-sponsors in the Senate and has a companion bill in the House introduced by Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick.
While the White House had earlier sought revisions to allow greater flexibility for Trump in implementing the sanctions, it remains unclear whether those changes have been finalised.
The development comes as the Trump administration continues efforts to negotiate a peace deal to end the Ukraine war, now nearing its fourth year, with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner leading the US negotiation team.
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