Graham, who co-authored the legislation with Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said the bill would give the U.S. president new leverage over countries purchasing discounted Russian oil and, in effect, funding Moscow’s war against Ukraine. This is not the first time the senior senator for South Carolina appears to have secured Trump’s support for the bill.
“After a very productive meeting today with President Trump on a variety of issues, he greenlit the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that I have been working on for months with Senator Blumenthal and many others,” Graham wrote in a Twitter post.
“This will be well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace and [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin is all talk, continuing to kill the innocent. This bill will allow President Trump to punish those countries who buy cheap Russian oil fueling Putin’s war machine.”
The measure would authorize sanctions on any country that continues to import Russian crude at below-market prices. Graham specifically named China, India, and Brazil as potential targets.
Graham added that Congress would “hopefully” take up the bill as early as next week and expressed confidence in strong, bipartisan support.
Even if passed, the legislation ultimately gives the White House full discretion over implementing any penalties it envisages. It is unclear how willing Trump is to impose additional tariffs (especially on China), given the negative economic effects of his 2025 tariff hikes (many of which have been postponed or walked back altogether).