The “Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026” has cleared its first hurdle in the United States Congress, and if passed, could trigger huge tariffs for countries such as India and China which continue to buy oil from Moscow. The bill was advanced overwhelmingly by the Senate this week in a vote of 86 to 12, meaning it can now proceed to the House of Representatives for further deliberation.
Named for the late Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Ukraine supporter who died unexpectedly this month, the bill moved forward with the support of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was in Washington to attend Graham’s funeral and watched the proceedings from the gallery. “It was an honour to be present as the votes were counted – 86 senators supported the bill,” he wrote on X afterwards.
The bill makes use of sanctions and tariffs to target Russia and cut off the economic pipeline that has kept the Ukraine war going. Major provisions include new sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as on more than 20 top officials and companies which work with the Russian defence industry. It also targets Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil tankers and the network it uses to evade international sanctions on its energy exports.
The bill gives the president authority to impose sanctions by invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Under it, he would be able to apply tariffs of up to 100 percent on exports to the US from the top five purchasers of Russian energy, military equipment or countries facilitating Russian sanctions evasion. Tariffs of up to 500 percent can also be applied to Russian imports directly into the US.
The potential targets of the bill include China, India and Türkiye, as they are among the largest buyers of Russian energy, according to data compiled by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). China has historically responded to Trump’s tariffs with tariffs of its own on US exports. Even Pay, a director at the Beijing-based consultancy Trivium China, told Al Jazeera that the US may wait to impose tariffs as Trump is due to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.
The bill would give Trump something he’s wanted for a while, namely, the legislature’s permission to impose high tariffs on China, alongside the small handful of other countries that import Russian oil. India is in a tricky position as its attempts to diversify away from Russian energy were disrupted by the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz.
Without the Iran addition, he said he would have expected the bill to pass once the House resumes given strong Democratic support for Ukraine. “Democrats have been genuinely worried about the Trump administration abandoning Ukraine,” Pay told Al Jazeera. “Something like this, which is ramping the pressure up on Russia so much, I just think there will be a large critical mass of Democrats who will vote for this.”
Critics like Senator Maggie Hassan say the bill gives Trump too much power and that it could lead to unintended consequences such as increased tensions between the US and Russia. “This bill has all the hallmarks of an attempt by the Trump administration to exert its authority over foreign policy without clear oversight or accountability,” she said.
The bill’s potential impact on global trade is also a concern, with some analysts warning that it could lead to retaliatory measures from countries such as China and India. David Smith, an associate professor at the University of Sydney’s US Studies Centre, told Al Jazeera: “One of the things they’re worried about is how the tariff power in relation to Iran is going to be expanded.”
The bill’s passage would mark a significant escalation in Washington’s efforts to pressure Russia over its actions in Ukraine and other regions. The potential consequences of such a move are far-reaching and could have significant implications for global trade, energy markets and international relations.
Source: Al Jazeera
Based on reporting from Al Jazeera.
