As diplomacy over the war in Ukraine unfolds in Washington, a fresh push is emerging to tighten the screws on Russia’s global energy trade. US President Donald Trump has backed a bill that would impose sanctions on countries buying Russian oil, including China and India, a senior Republican senator said.
Lindsey Graham, a senator from South Carolina, was quoted as saying that Trump had “greenlit” the bipartisan legislation after what he described as a “very productive” meeting.
He added that this bill will “allow” Trump to “punish countries who buy cheap Russian oil fueling Putin’s war machine.
According to media reports, the bill specifies four conditions under which an individual or a country can face sanctions under the law.
Sanctions can be imposed if a party refuses to negotiate a peace agreement with Ukraine.
They can also apply if a negotiated peace agreement is violated.
Another trigger is the initiation of a fresh invasion of Ukraine.
Sanctions may also be imposed if there is any attempt to overthrow, dismantle, or subvert the Ukrainian government.
Under the bill, anyone found in violation could face a series of penalties. These include bans on visas and tariffs reaching as high as 500%.
The move represents the latest effort by the US to increase pressure on Moscow. It comes as Russia and Ukraine are engaged in Washington-brokered negotiations aimed at ending the nearly four-year war.
The Trump administration, for the first time, supported European proposals for binding security guarantees for Ukraine. The proposals include post-war truce monitoring and a European-led multinational force.
Russia has repeatedly said it will not accept any deployment of soldiers from NATO member countries in Ukraine. Moscow has not yet indicated whether it would support the proposed security measures.
In a statement on the bill, Graham reportedly said the timing was significant given the situation in Ukraine.
“This will be well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace and Putin is all talk, continuing to kill the innocent,” he said.
Initially, the tariff on India was set at 25 per cent. Months after the Liberation Day announcement, Trump added another 25 percent tariff on India, accusing it of “fueling the war in Ukraine through its purchase of Russian oil.”
This brought India’s total tariffs to 50 per cent, placing it alongside Brazil as one of the countries facing the highest US levies.
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