Washington — President Trump on Friday signed a sweeping Russia sanctions bill that also threatens tariffs on the country’s biggest energy customers. The legislation was championed by the late Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.
The House passed the measure with bipartisan backing earlier this week, following Senate approval in August. Several Democrats had raised concerns that the bill could broaden the president’s authority to impose tariffs.
The new law, the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, authorizes the president to impose tariffs of up to 100% on the five largest buyers of Russian oil and natural gas. It also places sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched Russia’s war in Ukraine, along with government officials, oligarchs, banks and other financial institutions.
China and India are expected to face the greatest impact among foreign countries because they are the largest purchasers of Russian crude oil. Mr. Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on Sept. 24.
The legislation also expands sanctions targeting Iran’s energy and weapons industries.
Russia initially benefited from the global oil crunch created by the U.S. war with Iran. Early in the conflict, the Trump administration temporarily permitted the purchase of Russian oil that was already being transported by sea.
Graham pressed lawmakers to approve the sanctions measure shortly before his sudden death in July. The senator had recently returned from a trip to Ukraine when he died in Washington from a torn aorta. He was 71. Mr. Trump delivered the eulogy at his funeral.
Russia’s war in Ukraine continues, with no clear end in sight. Earlier this month, Mr. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff traveled to Moscow to meet with Putin and visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. Mr. Trump has voiced frustration over the conflict, which he has failed to end despite campaign promises to bring it to a close on his first day in office.
“The holdup is two people that hate each other,” Mr. Trump said after speaking with Putin. “I think more than anything else, it’s two people that hate each other.”
