Russia sanctions advance, as the US deepens economic pressure

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US President Donald Trump is expected to sign new legislation to step up economic pressure on Russia’s energy sector, over the objections of Democrats worried about handing him new trade powers.
The House of Representatives passed the sanctions bill, which had been championed by the late Sen. Lindsay Graham, on Wednesday. Among other measures, it allows Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on the top buyers and “facilitators” of Russian oil and gas (a list that includes China and, opponents like Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY) say, could be manipulated to include any country on Trump’s bad side). With some exceptions, the Trump administration has so far been reluctant to use its existing authority to escalate sanctions against Russia, fearing doing so could exacerbate the global oil and gas crunch. The bill, experts told Semafor, will make future penalties less discretionary for the president. But whether US officials will be willing and able to enforce them remains to be seen.
“How meaningful [this bill is] depends entirely on implementation,” Vladyslav Vlasiuk, a sanctions official in the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who had pushed for its passage, told Semafor. “What we want to see next is straightforward: Full and prompt use of the tariff authority on Russian oil and gas revenue, and tight coordination with the EU and G7 so there’s no easy way around sanctions.”

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