US Russia sanctions bill reduces tariffs on China, India
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday released an updated version of the Russia sanctions legislation, championed?by the late Senator Lindsey Graham. This revised bill eases the original proposal?s?tariff?threat to China, India, and other importers?of Russian oil and gas.
The bill, which is supported by both Republican senators and Democratic Senators, aims to impose sanctions against Russian officials, and use tariffs as a way to pressure China and India into reducing their dependency on Russia as a supplier of energy.
Graham, who passed away suddenly on Saturday had announced just one day before that he and Republican President Donald Trump had agreed to move ahead with the bill more than a full year after its introduction.
Senate aides reported that the bill had 26 co-sponsors, and expected to see more in a few hours. They expressed optimism regarding its chances of passing. One aide stated, "We are pretty confident about its progress."
The bill has been changed from its original version, introduced in April 2025 by Graham, a Republican South Carolina resident, and Richard Blumenthal a Connecticut Democrat.
The new measure reduces the tariffs placed on third party buyers of Russian gas and oil to 100% maximum on the five largest purchasers from the previous proposal of 500%.
This exemption also includes countries that import less than 15 percent of Russia's gas exports but are actively reducing their imports. Japan, France, Hungary and Belgium could be exempted.
China, France and Japan are the top five importers of Russian gas, while the top five buyers of Russian crude oil are China and India.
This measure imposes sanctions against Russia's shadow tanker fleet, which does not rely on Western maritime services. It also targets Russian financial institutions, such as the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. And it targets Russia's biggest state-owned energy companies, such as Yamal LNG, Arctic LNG 1, 2 & 3.
The new version also includes a provision allowing Trump to waive sanctions if it is in the national interest of the United States.
Buy in from Everyone
When asked about the softerening of certain provisions in the original bill, an aide to the Senate noted that months of negotiation had gone into securing a deal with Trump.
The aide stated that "this is the only bill that has the support of everyone and that will likely be the only one that can move forward to put pressure on Russia in the way that we all want it done." The aide spoke under anonymity as discussions about the bill are confidential.
Trump said to reporters earlier in the day at the White House that Hezbollah and Iran sanctions could be added to the bill. He added it would be "a very big thing" if these measures were added.
Blumenthal was cautious about adding new targets to the bill. Blumenthal told reporters that, "with all due respect to President Obama, he approved this bill and I think we should proceed with it rather than open it up to other possible targets."
A second Senate aide, when asked about Trump's statement, said that the bill exposes countries like Iran who work with the Russian defense industry base to tariffs and sanctions.
Trump expressed his optimism that the bill will pass and become law.
This is for Lindsey. It was his thing. He wanted it more than anything. "You know what he feels, and it's likely that this will happen," Trump said. (Reporting and editing by Edmund Klamann; Trevor Hunnicutt, David Ljunggren and Patricia Zengerle; Additional reporting and editing by Trevor Hunnicutt)
(source: Reuters)
