Graham, from South Carolina, said on Wednesday that Trump had “greenlit” the bipartisan legislation following a “very productive” meeting.
United States President Donald Trump has expressed support for a bill that would impose sanctions on countries buying Russian oil, including China and India, according to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.
Graham, from South Carolina, said on Wednesday that Trump had “greenlit” the bipartisan legislation following a “very productive” meeting.
The Sanctioning Russia Act, co-drafted by Graham and Democrat Richard Blumenthal, would give Trump the authority to impose tariffs of up to 500 percent on imports from countries engaged with Russia’s energy sector.
“This bill will allow President Trump to punish those countries who buy cheap Russian oil, fueling Putin’s war machine,” Graham said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It gives Trump tremendous leverage against countries like China, India, and Brazil to incentivize them to stop buying cheap Russian oil that finances Putin’s bloodshed in Ukraine.”
Despite US and European sanctions, China and India remain major buyers of Russian oil. Analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air shows China purchased nearly half of Russia’s crude oil exports in November, while India accounted for about 38 percent.
Brazil significantly increased its purchases of subsidized Russian oil after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, though imports have declined in recent months.
Catherine Wolfram, a former US Treasury official who worked on sanctions under President Joe Biden, cautioned that using tariffs as a sanction tool is largely untested.
“Russia and India may call the US bluff and continue importing Russian oil, perhaps at a discount, since the cost to the US of enforcing the threat especially during trade talks with China is significant,” she told Journalists.
The Trump administration’s move comes as Russia and Ukraine continue Washington-brokered negotiations to end the nearly four-year war.
On Tuesday, the administration supported European proposals for binding security guarantees for Ukraine, including post-war monitoring and a European-led multinational force.
Russia has not indicated support for any deployment of NATO troops in Ukraine.
Graham said the timing of the legislation was critical.
“This comes at a pivotal moment, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace while Putin continues to kill the innocent,” he said.
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